Skies of Darkness
by TearfulFriend18
Summary: A month has passed since Soren and the Guardians defeated Metalbeak and the Pure Ones. Peace has dawned on the owl kingdoms, and Soren and his friends are now Guardians of Ga'hoole. But the peace is short-lived. A new threat has emerged from the ruins of St. Aegolius, and Soren must confront the darkness to save himself, and all that he holds close to his heart.
1. Prologue

**A/N: This is my first fanfiction ever, I'm stocked to finally be in the ranks of fantastic writers, I hope you enjoy my version of the sequel. Disclaimer: I do not own Legend of the Guardians.**

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**Prologue**

The moon shined with brilliance, casting rays of light onto the lands below. The moon had existed to see many different things: The birth of life, The reign of reptilian animals, Extinctions, and the rise of man. But with man's rising, the moon was greeted with years of terror. Man fought war after war, even after the largest war in history, man couldn't stop fighting. One day, the moon paid witness to a series of bright flashes on the earth's surface, giant clouds began to cover the planet, and the moon, ever watchful, saw man slowly destroy itself. It was decades before the clouds disappeared, and the moon watched a new world take place. No man, no war, no death, only peace. From the birth of the new world came the owls. The moon had shined upon them during the age of man, but seemed to have now changed. These owls began to study the world, and years later, the owls had taken the role of man. Unlike man, the owls kept peace sustained in the world for decades, wanting to learn instead of fight. But the moon, ever vigilant, could somehow understand that peace could never last. It was true, one night, the moon illuminated the world, not a world of peace, but of war. Illuminated by the moon were owls slashing with talons, beak, and blades. One fought for dominance, the other fought for order. In the years that came, the moon watched as life after life was ended, until a battle was fought across the sea, and two owls left that battle. One left without a beak, the other left without a talon. Peace settled for a decade, then the fighting started again. The same two owls fought each other, but the moon was also greeted to two more owls fighting in fire. One seemed to fall into the fire while the moon watched. It would always be there to watch, no matter how many deaths it could see, it only assured the moon of one thing: Peace could never last.

A forest fire raged across the forest of The Beaks, it consumed every living creature with ease, giving it a slow, painful death. Out of the inferno came an owl, screaming in pure agony. Diving into a small creek, the owl quickly relaxed under the cooling liquid, but nothing could extinguish the fire that blazed in his heart. His name was Kludd, after he and his brother were captured by a group of owls called "The Pure Ones", Kludd had finally found a place where he belonged, his brother Soren didn't want to be a part of it, even his sister Eglantine rejected the name of the Pure Ones. The only family he had now was his two leaders: Metalbeak, and his mate Nyra. His brother always spoke of the Guardians of Ga'hoole, a mythical group of noble owls. His siblings would never quit talking about them, and he was glad when they were out of the picture. He only cared about power, and Soren had never seen "true" power. After a grueling battle with the "glorious" Guardians of Ga'hoole, Kludd finally had a chance to show his brother what true power was truly about. Now he lay here, slowly burning, with a blackened face, and a broken wing. But his spirit wasn't broken, and it would never break. He opened his eyes in time to see the Guardians fly away with the owlets in their talons. At the back of the group where four owls: an elf owl, A great grey, a burrowing owl, and a familiar looking barn owl. A smile slowly crept upon his face, full of malice, his brother was still alive, and he would finally have the chance to destroy his world. _Just you wait brother, I'm going to make you pay dearly for what you did to me. By the time I'm finished, you will be begging me for death!_


	2. Unhappy Reunion

**Chapter 1**

A small blue bird gorged itself on a small nut. It's beak broke the nut's shell, revealing it's appetizing contents. Suddenly, the ground around it darkened. The bird looked up towards the source of the darkness, only to see a large shadow fly towards it. Paralyzed with fear, the bird felt long, sharp talons lock onto it's body. The bird shrieked in fear, so loud it could not hear the malevolent voice talking to it. "Now, now, little bird." the voice cooed. "Why do you cry out, no one will save you, you're all alone." The bird looked at it's captor, and saw pure white feathers, tainted with red across the brow. It's eyes were a bluish green, tainted with orange. Her beak forced a smile and spoke again. "I am Nyra, widow of the lord, High Tyto. And you are my next meal." The bird was suddenly thrown across the cavern, where it smashed against the wall with a sickening crunch. As it's life force ebbed away, it saw the owl grab onto it's neck. And with one swipe, everything went dark.

Nyra's kill slid down her throat with ease. Eating was a pleasantry among the Pure Ones nowadays. Weeks after the battle with the Guardians, and the fall of her husband, Nyra had taken command of her fallen army. Hiding in The Beaks, the army was constantly looking for food, and they all desperately missed their fallen leader. Nyra missed him, he could be harsh, but she loved him as he loved her. Now he was gone, murdered by the talons of a mere owlet. It didn't matter if all the guardians died, her war would end with the owlet's death.

Wortmore, a pure one commander, glided towards Nyra, with a grim look on his face. "My queen." he said, taking a bow. "What is it?" Nyra sneered. She was too busy to bother with whatever he had to say, but his posture showed that this was important. "An owl has found us, he claims to be one of us." This was old news to Nyra, owls always wanted protection, but she would give nothing. As her husband said : "The Broken must be put out of their misery." Nyra gave a small chuckle. "Just send him away, or kill him." Wortmore gave her a serious gaze. "He has Metalbeak's mask." Nyra froze, looking at Wortmore with a look of shock. How, is this some sort of trick? "Take me to him!" she screamed. "Right away, my queen!" Wartmore stated.

Wortmore led Nyra to a small cave. The pure ones used this place for supplies, now they used this place as a home. Nyra flew to a small squadron of pure ones who had surrounded the newcomer. This newcomer held a pure one mask, caked with blood; this owl had stolen this helmet."Who are you?" she hissed. "One who grieves for the loss of our king as much as you do." Nyra froze, not at the words, but of the familiarity of the voice. She also noticed his right wing dangled from an odd angle."What is your name?" she asked. Removing his mask, the owl stated "I wouldn't expect you to recognize me." The owl who stood in front of Nyra was badly burned, covered with wounds, and looked like he would pass out. But it was his eyes that caught her attention; they were a dark orange, the color of a blazing inferno, and she could make out the smallest hint of blood red in his pupil. This was the brother of the one who killed her mate, she knew him all too well. She looked at him with a look of hatred and sneered "Kludd." Kludd's eyes grew wide for a brief moment, until he reached behind himself, and pulled out another mask. This one was more detailed, designed to show power, strength, and ferocity, Metalbeak's mask. Nyra walked up to him, and snatched the mask from his talons. She glared at him. "How DARE you, take this from him, it was meant to be in it's rightful place!" Kludd looked confused. "I thought you would need it for..." she couldn't hear anymore, she threw herself at him, smashing him against the wall of the cavern. His eyes went wide as he succumbed to unconsciousness. Nyra eyed her victim. _How dare he come to our hollows, and try to justify himself to us!_ then her face wore a look of malice. _If he truly wants to be with us, then he will have to fight for it._


	3. Tears and Premonitions

**A/N: First off, HUGE thanks for those who reviewed my story, I couldn't be happier that it's received as well as it is. I'm finalizing my ideas for Kludd in the next chapter, so I wanted to start off Soren's side of the story, and kind of start off the romance with Otulissa. SPOILER: This isn't the only romance in the story, and it's not Kludd/Nyra. I'll leave with that, shall we proceed? Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 2**

Soren opened his eyes, He saw only red. Getting up, he realized his feathers were soaked with a thick, red liquid_. Blood!_ Soren realized in terror. He looked at his body and not a cut was found. Turning his attention to the blood, he realized it was coming from another body. Walking up to it, he saw this rather small owl's body covered in deep gashes from it's wingtip to head. _Great Glaux!_ Soren thought. _What monster could have done this? _He turned the body over and nearly went yeep with fright.

_Gylfie? No, no, no, it can't be!_ Yet here she was, bloodied, cold, and very much dead. Tears welled up in his eyes at the sight of his best friend's lifeless body. He looked ahead of her and felt his gizzard stop; the hollow was filled with the dead. His friends were all here, corpses that would never breathe the fresh air again. He didn't even stop to look at them; it would only cause more heartbreak. Digger, Twilight, Mrs.P, even his sister Eglantine, all being consumed by the seemingly endless tide of blood. Following the blood, Soren came unto the Guardian's chamber, and he was sure that the sight before him did make his gizzard stop. Otulissa lay in the talons of another owl, her neck ripped to shreds, causing the steady flow of blood. Soren looked on as his beloved bled onto the floor.

The owl carrying her was massive barn owl, ripped with muscle, scorch marks marking its body, and a long scar etched on its neck. The face was concealed in a great mask that looked very familiar. The owl turned to him, and opened its eyes. Blood red, the eyes showed pain, anger, and raw power. In mere seconds, Soren was pinned to the ground by massive battle claws, stained with the blood of his friends. He looked at the mask more closely and a cold realization hit him. _Metalbeak's mask! But how? He's dead!_ The owl chuckled at him, seeming to hear his thoughts. Soren could suddenly hear a single voice in his head, and understood that the dark creature was speaking to him. _Look around you Soren. This is what will become of your precious guardians. You think us defeated?_ The voice asked_. We grow stronger every day, we will return, and I will be the one to bring all the owl kingdoms to their last breath!_ The creature's voice now took on an icy tone, filled with hatred_. But for you Soren, I will personally make sure you suffer, and when all you hold dear is gone, I will gladly accept your request for death, brother. _At this remark Soren looked up at the creature and whispered "Kludd?" His brother's eyes began to change from blood-red to a bright yellow as he let out an animal-like shriek. His beak began to tear into Soren's flesh as he screamed. "NOOOOOOOO..."

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Otulissa woke up to the sound of thunder. Getting up from her hollow, she looked upon the clouds, dark, and menacing. Lightning split the air around the sea, followed by the deafening roar of thunder. Over the thunder, she could've sworn she had heard a scream, after a few seconds, she heard it again. _What in the name of Glaux is that? _She flew towards the source of the noise, realizing it was coming from _Soren's hollow?_ she realized. Flying inside, she saw her crush lying on the floor, whimpering and shaking uncontrollably. She nudged his neck with her head cooing "Wake up, Soren." Suddenly, Soren's eyes shot open as he screamed "NOOOOOOOOOOO!" He turned his head around the room, until his frenzied eyes found her own. Tears welled up in his eyes as he embraced her, sobbing uncontrollably. Otulissa spoke in a comforting tone "Shhh, it's ok Soren, you're ok, and I'm here." Soren continued to spill tears across her back as he whimpered "Gylfie... Twilight... Everyone, all dead!" Otulissa concluded that he had been through a nightmare, and a terrible one at that. "It was just a dream Soren, that's all it" "NO!" Soren exclaimed "It was too real, I can still feel the blood on my feathers!" he once again broke into sobs. Otulissa continued to embrace him, not caring about what would happen next, only caring that she could comfort him in his time of need.

After what seemed like hours, they finally let go of each other and stared into each others eyes. Soren was star-struck; the pain he felt had begun to slip away. Ever since he arrived at the Ga'hoole tree; he had always been entranced with her eyes. A golden yellow, with an orange hue, reminding him of the brightness of day he saw when he escaped St. Aggies. Otulissa stared at him and asked "Are you ok now?" Soren slowly leaned his head towards hers, and to his delight, she did the same. Their beaks were about to meet when they heard a gruff "AHEM!" Both owls let out a yelp of fear as they looked to the source of the noise. Ezylryb stood before them with a huge smile, chuckling. "Well, isn't this an….. Interesting surprise." His smile faded. "I wish we could meet under better circumstances, but something has happened." He now spoke directly to Soren. "As a Guardian, we require you and your friends to attend the meeting, come along boy."

Soren took one last look at Otulissa, who was still blushing. "I guess I'll see you later." He said nervously. "Yeah, good luck on the meeting." She replied back, turning away. Soren turned to leave, but spun around and gave Otulissa a quick kiss on the cheek, he than flew out of the hollow. Otulissa wore a look of shock, but was slowly replaced, as a smile crept upon her face.

**Well, what did you guys think? Did I win/fail at the romance bits. Their not a couple(yet) so I wanted a bit of Fluff. We get back to Kludd in the next chapter. I'll be updating as much as I can, It can very between 2 days, to a WHOLE WEEK! GASP! Any questions, send me a PM, And if you want to see my Favorite story EVER, Check out Dragonmaster000's fantastic story "The Broken Line" on the Spyro the Dragon archive. His amazing work, inspired me to create this fanfiction, look him up, I promise you will love it. PS: If you don't understand Spyro but want to read his story, the just search the plot summaries of the 3 "The Legend of Spyro" games. See you real soon!**


	4. Visceral Punishment

**A.N: FINALLY, I'm back, sorry for the delay, Finals are this week so I gotta study my ass off. This is a turning point in my story making, this chapter marks my very first ACTION SEQUENCE WOO! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, I took great care to make this chapter, and went under heavy revision after revision to get to where it is now, and I personally think I did an OK job. Enough chit-chat, lets get this show on the road. Enjoi. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 3  
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Kludd awoke to find only blackness. His head hurt, as if gongs were banging inside his skull. _How did I get here?_ He thought. Then it all came back to him. _Nyra!_ The very thought of her name sent a wave of pure pain that no wound could ever inflict. _How could she do this to me?_ He questioned himself. _I gave up everything to serve the Pure Ones, and now she views me as an enemy!_

He leaned forward, and his beak smashed into a hard, flat object, sending a ripple of pain across his body. As the pain slowly ebbed away, he saw that he was facing a wall, miles high and covered in black soot.  
Kludd continued to observe his surroundings; he was at the wall of a large cavern. He looked to the sky. Jagged peaks tore through a hazy sunset that glowed a bright orange, creating a dense orange fog.

His eyes strained to see through the haze, barely making out shapes of stone. His wing ached, it had not yet fully healed and the soot could give it a nasty infection. Suddenly a large force barreled into him, forcing him to the ground. "Get up boy!" a voice growled. Kludd had no desire to do that, but not cooperating would most certainly mean death. He turned to face his attacker and found himself face to face with a Long-Eared Owl covered in white paint. Kludd recognized this owl; it was the one who kidnapped his brother. _Jutt_he thought. Jutt's expression was not one of playfulness, but instead full of hate, and strangely enough: fear. His body looked perfectly fine, except for a long scar across his abdomen, and his cold gaze held with Kludd's until he finally spoke again. "Come on then." he said, pushing him forward with his wing.

Jutt led Kludd to the other side of the cavern, where a large cave awaited. In the darkness, the two owls came onto what seemed to be a large arena. It reminded him of the place where he caught his first bird, which would lead him to his first meeting with Metalbeak. The owls were eyed by a dozen Pure One soldiers, but none affected Kludd more than the venomous gaze of the owl atop a large rock: Nyra. "You have some nerve to come back to us, traitor!" she sneered. "I don't understand what I did my queen!" Kludd pleaded. Nyra once again flew at him, and pinned him to the ground. Her eyes had become a dark red as she sneered: "Don't you EVER call me 'Your queen'; you are no longer a Pure One." with that she added "Get out of our sight."

She got off of him and proceeded to walk away, but a single sound stopped her cold. "No." Nyra slowly turned her head towards Kludd, who was now in a defensive stance. He continued to speak. "I have a right to know why you all think me a traitor!" with desperation he continued. "I've given up everything to be in your ranks, and now you toss me away like I was nothing but spronk!"Nyra sneered at him. "I gave you SPECIFIC orders to stay with Metalbeak, and you disobeyed me to fight your brother, not only that, but you LOST!" she now screamed at him. "And now he's dead because of YOU!" Kludd now understood, Nyra blamed him for not protecting Metalbeak, and to make things worse, the battle he lost with his brother had been the cause of Metalbeak's death. _I'll have to prove that I'm worthy then_. He thought triumphantly. "Give me another chance; I'll prove to you that I can still do well to the Pure Ones." Nyra began to chuckle. "Kludd, if you really want to be a part of us, you must fight for it." she then turned her attention to Jutt. "Leave us." she ordered. Jutt complied, but as he turned around, Kludd heard him say something. "May Glaux have mercy on you."

Jutt walked away, mumbling something about Pure Ones always being mad about something. Kludd turned to Nyra, she had a smile on her face, as if she was looking at an appetizing meal. "To grant yourself the title of soldier with us, you must fight three of our finest warriors." Kludd wasn't worried about that, but was instead worried about his wing, he couldn't fight with one wing. "But I have only one good wing!" Kludd protested. "Well then I guess you will have to try harder." Nyra sneered. "Now allow me to introduce your adversaries." immediately after she said that, three owls began to surround him.

Nyra gestured to one owl, a barn owl, with muscular wings, a tanned coat, and the symbolic mask of a Pure One soldier. Kludd stared at his battle claws, that gleamed in the sunset, it looked as if they were on fire. "This is Wortmore." Nyra introduced. "He is a commander, and a fierce one at that, I trained him myself, so I assure you he is not to be taken likely."

The second barn owl was even more massive than Wortmore, in fact every square inch of this one bulged with muscle. This one was most definitely a veteran, as his body was covered with numerous scars and disfigurements. Kludd couldn't help but admire the owl's talons, which wore no battle claws. They gleamed with brilliance, they looked even sharper than battle claws. "This is Uglamore, my lieutenant." she introduced again."He was trained by the Lord High Tyto himself, and has survived every battle that has come before." Kludd now had one thought coursing in his mind: _Why are there so many owls with 'more' at the end of their names?  
_  
The final owl stepped forward. Kludd was taken aback, this was no barn owl, but a Grass owl, with dark shades of green and yellow on his feathers. Nyra took a different approach to introducing this owl. "I think it's safe to say that you too know each other." she stated. The grass owl responded."I believe that's true, isn't it traitor?" Kludd could only growl his name. "Nix." The young grass owl had been his competition for the place of soldier, and he had not taken defeat well. As far has Kludd knew, Nix probably volunteered at the chance to kill his rival. "He has become quite a soldier, never disobeys orders, and always kills with ease. Nyra explained. "This should be very entertaining." she added. "Kludd, any final words?" she asked. Kludd spoke defiantly: "Only that I don't deserve the punishment that you have charged me with." Nyra grinned with malice as she spoke to the three owls. "Kill him."

Wortmore was the first to charge at Kludd, his talons raised in the air, aimed for Kludd's throat. Kludd leaped to the right, causing Wortmore to smash into the ground. Kludd landed on his injured wing, sending a shock of pain to his body. Taking advantage of his weakened state, both Nix and Ulgamore flew at him. In desperation Kludd jumped up and smashed into Ulgamore, digging his talons into his muscular pelt. "GET OFF ME!" he screeched, as he tried to pry Kludd off of him with strange flight maneuvers. Spinning and diving, Ulgamore did everything he could to get him off, but Kludd held on as hard as he could. Wortmore, who had recovered from the blow, now flew at full speed towards Kludd. Releasing his talons, Kludd jumped from Ulgamore's back just as Wortmore smashed into Ulgamore's side. "You worthless dimwit!" Ulgamore screeched as he felt Wortmore's battle claws slash at his side. Blood sprayed from Ulgamore's wounds as he angrily threw Wortmore against the side of the cavern. Kludd clung on to the cavern's side, trying his best to ignore the pain in his wing. Fear clung onto his gizzard as he saw Wortmore flying towards him. Taking a leap of faith, Kludd extended his talons to the oncoming owl. The mere speed of Wortmore's decent caused Kludd's talons to slice into the owl's back, the force digging into his spine. Kludd felt Wortmore go completely limp, and blood began to drip out of his mouth. Kludd ripped of Wortmore's pair of battle claws and threw him to the ground, satisfied when he heard the distant crunch of bone.

Nyra watched in disbelief as Wortmore fell to the ground_. Two of our finest warriors, defeated by an owlet with a broken wing?_ She realized that he truly wanted to be back in their ranks. _Well, he only has one test left, let's see how he copes._She thought as she turned to the darkening sky.

Kludd put on the battle claws as he thought of his odds: Wortmore was dead, Ulgamore was bleeding heavily, he was definitely done for the day, that left... _Nix? Where is he? _As if on que, An owl crashed onto Kludd, sending him to the ground below. Raising his broken wing, he managed to barely glide to the ground, crashing hard onto his right side. Kludd tried getting up, but a pair of talons pushed him back to the ground. He felt sharp points poking his back, they pushed even deeper as Kludd cried out in pain. "Look at the owl with 'exceptional promise', LOOK AT YOU NOW!" Nix taunted. "It's a shame you won't be able to see our victory, when we finally triumph over the Guardians of Ga'hoole." he continued. "And the victory will be all the sweeter, when it will be I who kills your brother." The very thought of Soren filled Kludd with a rage he had never experienced before. Thoughts of his father preferring Soren over him flooded his mind, and he had to make sure that it was HE that would kill Soren. Letting out a screech of fury, Kludd threw Nix off of him, grabbed onto his leg, and twisted. The leg made a loud SNAP that was soon followed by a wail of pain, but Kludd didn't stop, he began slashing at Nix with the battle claws. Kludd tore into Nix, ripping out chunks of flesh and splattering the ground with gore, he took his talons and ripped into Nix's eyes, slicing them open, as Nix tried to fly away. Kludd took Nix's left wing in his talons and twisted until he heard something crack, and he continued to twist, relishing Nix's pleas for mercy. At last Nix stood up, blind, bleeding out, and defeated. Kludd looked at his foe, and imagined he was Soren. Filled with rage, Kludd dug the battle claws into Nix's throat, and sliced down the middle, releasing all of his organs into the ground with a splash of gore. Kludd went to Nix and with renewed vigor, ripped off one of Nix's ribs, and stabbed him through the beak into the brain. Kludd looked at his kill with pride, and he let out a screech of victory for he was triumphant.

Nyra looked in horror, it was a death she would have not wished any owl, yet here it was, an owl torn limb from bloody limb, having its intestines piled on a bloody heap. Nyra watched as Kludd walked up to her, covered in blood and dirt. Nyra's gizzard grew tense, for his eyes were now a bright yellow, he then spoke, but not in his own voice, this voice was distorted and filled with venom. "Am I good enough now, My queen?" he snarled, he then began to laugh maniacally, until he collapsed unconscious on the ground. Nyra looked on in worry, St. Aggies was lost, and the Guardians were most certainly making their next move. She looked at Kludd, he seemed so innocent, yet so deadly. _Perhaps I can use that to my advantage_. A Pure One soldier padded up to her. "All you alright my queen?" Nyra smirked "Yes Urk, I'm fine, and I think we've just found our weapon to turn the tide on the war." She stroked Kludd with her wing, he would need his strength, and they all would.

**A.N: Well, what did you guys think? Good, bad, horrible. Please leave a review, and if you have any questions, just PM me. The name Nix belongs to FeoranPride on DA. I give you le review arrow. Adios**

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	5. Strange Aweakenings

**Hey. hey, hey everybody! Wow, 8 reviews on my story? I never thought I would make it to 3! THANK YOU SO MUCH! Your reviews inspire me to continue this story, and I promise you this: I WILL FINISH THIS STORY! I won't let this sink like so many others on . This chapter is filler, I'm bad at filler, so bear with me. Today we get to Digger :-) Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 4  
**

Digger lay against the wall of the hollow, dreaming pleasant dreams. Thunder roared across the tree, but Digger still dreamed, mumbling to himself. "Hmm, dingos...trees...that's right, owls who." Suddenly a loud noise vibrated across the hollow, waking up Digger and sending him sprawling on the floor. His heart beating fast, Digger looked at the source of the noise: Twilight's snoring. "Oh good Glaux." Digger exclaimed.

The hollow seemed strangely dark, Digger looked out and saw why: a large storm was passing across the Sea of Hoolemere, encasing the great tree with a barrage of strong winds, flashes of lightning, and the ever-present downpour of rain. Back in his old hollow, Digger had never witnessed large storms like these, now they where a constant, almost as bad as the mists surrounding the Ga'hoole tree. Digger noticed an owl was already up, looking onwards towards the storm. Almost immediately after he noticed the owl, it flew off towards Soren's hollow. As soon as it reached Soren's hollow, Digger instantly knew who it was. _Ottulisa_Digger thought. The young short-eared owl had been enamored with his friend ever since they arrived, constantly trying to catch his eye with her looks, which always worked. He knew Soren was smitten with her, which surprised him. Digger had always thought of her as a snobb, but she was kind to Soren and cared for him and his friends. That had to count for something.

Digger walked back to his resting spot, only to bump into Gylfie, who was resting in a soft blanket of moss. Digger took a long look at her, observing her delicate features, her brown feathers, the little spots on her white chest, and her lovely hazel eyes. _Wait... Hazel eyes?_ She was awake. Digger jumped back a little at the realization, bumping hard into the side of the hollow. He winced at the pain, while Gylfie let out a soft chuckle. "Are you alright there, Digger?" she asked. Digger slowly got up, shaking off the dust on his feathers. "Yeah, I'm fine." he stated. "What were you doing?" Gylfie asked. Digger began to stutter as he searched for an excuse. "Well, um...you see... I was...uh..sleep walking." Gylfie looked unconvinced. "Sleepwalking... In one spot... Staring at me." _I'm screwed_ Digger thought. "Um...yes." he replied, giving a nervous grin. "Well, ok then." Gylfie replied. Digger was once again captivated by her hazel eyes, he remembered her face when he first saw her, wounded and seeking a place to rest. Gylfie took notice of his staring. "Digger, you're doing it again." Filled with panic, Digger began to turn to walk towards his side of the hollow. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'll ju-" Digger slipped on the wet moss and barreled straight into Gylfie. Landing on top of her, they went down with a large thud. _Well this is the ideal way to start your night._ Digger thought. "Sorry, are you ok?" he asked. This time it was Gylfie who stared onto his eyes, a light green, almost symbolistic of his personality, always joking, and enjoying everything life had to offer. _Except Twilight's lute. _She thought to herself.

"Maybe you two should get your own hollow." a deep voice stated. Digger flew off of her and stared into the eyes of a newly awakened Twilight. "Honestly, if I hadn't known you two, I would assume you two were lovers." he said, badly retaining a chuckle. Digger was about to respond, but Gylfie beat him to it. "Me and Digger, Lovers?" she asked. "You kid yourself, Twilight." For whatever reason, Digger found that statement to be very hurtful. He was fine with anyone else saying it, but because it came from Gylfie, it seemed to strike a hard blow. Suddenly a gruff voice entered the hollow. "I'm surprised at you Digger, your the one who always kids yourself." The owls all turned around to see Ezylryb and Soren chuckling at them. "Come on guys, Ezylryb says something has happened." Stated Soren before he and his mentor flew away. The other three owls all gave looks of uncertainty and disbelief. _One year, that's all I want, one year without a fight._Digger thought. The three owls followed Soren and Ezylryb to the Guardians chamber while the dark, thunderous clouds of the storm raged on.

* * *

Kludd awoke to a feeling of warmth, and peace. Checking his surroundings, Kludd saw that he was in a stone hollow, lit by a small fire that gave him warmth to the cold day. Thunder roared in the distance, signaling a storm. _ Well it seems distant, probably already past us._ He concluded.

His thoughts then wandered off to what happened in the arena. He remembered the blood, the fall, and the taunting. Strangely, Kludd couldn't recall what happened after Nix taunted him, only that he felt only rage, rage that consumed his very being. _What came over me? _Kludd thought.

He remembered the dream, him wandering through some Glaux forsaken wasteland, and meeting some strange Crow-like creature, almost like a cross between a crow and an owl. The creature had spoken to him, in a distorted, yet feminine voice. "Soon Kludd." it had said. "You are one of us, and we will return to you soon." it had walked up to him with rusted, bloody battle claws and whispered: "Nachtmagen is the key." it then left, but all he could remember was her bright yellow eyes.

The scampering of a small mouse broke his concentration, as he stared at its small, warm little body. In less then a second, Kludd pinned it down with his talons and snapped its neck. Kludd was suddenly aware of his own hunger, and began to gorge into the mouse, the bloody meat tantalizing his senses. He was then reminded of Nix's death, how it made Kludd feel so... Alive. As if Kludd could feel every bone cracking, and blood vessels being severed.

He was suddenly aware of familiar voices coming from outside the hollow. Kludd cautiously pressed his ear to the side of the hollow, and heard a strange conversation. "He's dangerous; you saw what he did to Nix." _Ulgamore._ Kludd realized. "I've never seen an owl kill another like that, it's almost like he had the rage of all of Hagsmire in his attacks." Another voice entered the picture. Nyra's voice. "We must count on that rage, look at us Ulgamore, we live in ruin, the guardians could attack us at any time, and Skench's army grows stronger every day!" _Who in Glaux's name is Skench? _Kludd thought. "But my queen-" Ulgamore began. "SILENCE!" Nyra sneered. "Kludd is now our most valuable asset; we need him if this plan is too succeed." _What plan?_ Kludd thought. "I must speak with him." she said. In a frenzy Kludd fell down against the stone floor, and devoured the rest of his mouse. He turned to see the sleek, beautiful form of Nyra standing before him. "Kludd," she said. "We have a proposition for you."

**A.N: Well that ordeal is over, it's tough writing filler. (Hope it doesn't show.) I've recently seen my most anticipated movie of the summer (Even more than The Dark Knight Rises) Prometheus in IMAX 3D. IT WAS AMAZING, best science fiction movie of the DECADE! Well, enough of me wasting your time. Thanks for reading, please review, any questions, PM me. See you soon my fellow guardians. (I can't believe I just said that! XD) Le review arrow**

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	6. New Plans and Developed Feelings

**What's this, a quick update? O.O I'm glad to be back and continuing the story. Once again, HUGE thanks to my reviewers, I can't stress how thankful I am for your consideration and support. Sorry, but NO Kludd in this chapter. :-( I know, it's tragic, but for the plot, he needed to be absent. Trust me, If I could, I would write about him every chapter, but the story I want to tell isn't always about him. (Trust me, when he returns, I promise it will be EPIC!) This chapter sets up the backbone of most of the story, so that makes it most important. I've taken SOME themes from book 4, and in case you didn't know about the future of this story, check my Bio on my profile, I think you'll dig it. :-) Enough talk, lets continue, shall we? Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 5  
**

Soren and his friends followed Ezylryb to the guardian's chamber. Soren looked around in awe, the entire room was built with the great tree's roots, silver shields lined the walls, each symbolizing the chaws Soren and his friends had to complete. The king and queen sat behind symbolistic white roots, behind the roots were eight orange flames that illuminated the entire room. Soren had been here only twice, yet he felt that he knew every square inch.

All the other guardians were there, Soren only recognized a few of them: Boron and Barran, the king and queen, Bubo, the blacksmith, and _Otulissa?_ Soren thought wildly. _What's she doing here?_ Soren only needed to look into her eyes to realize he was wrong. He was looking at Strix Struma, the leader of the navigation chaw. Otulissa was very fond of her, always looking up to her for guidance and wisdom. He could see why, she was honorable, and a vicious fighter, owning two swords instead of battle claws. Thinking about Otulissa made him feel warm inside, reminding him of her warm embrace, her soft feathers against his, and their beaks almost touching, her calling out his name, over and over again. _Why can I still hear it?_He wondered. The voice became gruff. "SOREN!" It was Ezylryb calling him. Looking dazed, Soren looked at Ezylryb and his friends. They all looked annoyed. Twilight muttered "That boy and his fantasies, rubbish!" Soren chuckled to himself before looking at Boron, who didn't look too pleased as well. "If we are done having our 'Interruptions', then we should get down to business." Boron stated.

Boron began. "Since our last encounter with the Pure Ones, we've seen no sign of them." he continued. "In order to prevent them from returning, we've set up small patrols to guard the beaks." Twilight looked bored. "Well what's the problem then, if our patrols guard it then we are fine." Boron gave Twilight a cold stare before replying. "That was over two weeks ago, none of them have returned." Twilight's eyes grew wide. "Oh." he whispered. Boron continued. "And to make matters worse, other patrols have told me that owlets are still disappearing, I don't believe this to be a coincidence." "Neither do I." Ezylryb stated. "Could it be the Pure Ones again?" Gylfie asked. Boron replied. "No, their defeat was great; they couldn't have recovered in a mere week's time. No, this is something else entirely."

"Well, how will we find out?" Soren inquired. Boron looked upon the four guardians. "That is where you four come in." Before Soren could ask why, Barran interjected. "You four happen to be our youngest guardians, since these new owls seem to be kidnapping owlets, you will be our little spies." Soren was flabbergasted, he thought he has escaped St. Aggies, and now he had to go back? He was about to object, but Twilight beat him to it. "This is Outrageous!" _Tell them, Twilight!_ Soren thought. Twilight continued. "I'm not an owlet!" _Wait what?_Soren thought in disbelief. Twilight was suddenly aware of looks of disbelief on his friend's faces. "What?" he asked. "I'm fine with the plan, but if you think I'm going to pass as an owlet, then you are mistaken."

Soren walked closer to the king and queen. "Your Majesty, me and Gylfie BARELY escaped with our lives!" Thoughts of their escape reminded him of Grimble, the one who sacrificed himself to make sure he and Gylfie had a chance. _Someday Grimble, I will avenge you._Soren thought determinably. Recollecting himself, Soren continued. "How do you expect us to escape again, with FOUR owls this time?" It was Strix Struma who answered this time. "You four have changed since your arrival, you are vigilant, noble, and admirable guardians and we wouldn't send you on this mission if we didn't think you could handle it." Soren felt a bit better, but fear still clenched to his gizzard, if any of his friends died, he would never forgive himself. Digger spoke. "When do we leave?" "Immediately." Boron answered. "You will have a chance to say goodbye to your loved ones, but this threat must be dealt with as soon as possible."

* * *

Soren flew back towards his hollow, he needed to say goodbye to his family. To his surprise, they were already awake and waiting for him. His mother, Marilla, walked up to him and brushed her feathers with his. "I don't know what's going on, but I hope you stay safe." she said. Noctus came up next. "Remember what I told you about flying, you just need to spread your wings." Soren smiled, Grimble had been the one to teach him to truly fly, his father had only taught him to branch. Still, the pained look on his fathers face made him listen intently. Before he knew it, a smaller owls rammed into his side, cutting of the air in his lungs. "Eglantine, *cough* what was that for?" His younger sister had grown to be a beautiful barn owlet, her down had not fully come apart, but in a few weeks time, she could look like she was ready to take on the world. Her voice was slightly deeper, but still retained the little squeak she used to have. "You can't go Soren, you'll be killed!" Soren smiled. "You think I can't handle it, I'm hurt." She was the one who looked hurt. "I don't want you to end up like Kludd!" At the mention of his deceased brother's name, Soren's gizzard was clutched in sadness. The painful memories of Kludd falling into the inferno played over and over again into his mind, what was even more painful than that was the fact that Kludd had JOINED the Pure Ones. Only Soren and Eglantine knew this, their parents only knew that he died a noble death. Eglantine's face was consumed in sadness, with small tears welling up in her eyes. Soren embraced her as he replied. "I won't, that I can promise you." He then called out: "Mrs. P." His nursemaid slithered through the roots and came close to him. "Yes dearie?" Soren embraced her as well. During the long journey to find the guardians, Mrs. P had been the one to remind him that his family was still out there, she gave him hope. "I need you to keep an eye on Eglantine, make sure she stays out of trouble." he said. "Oh, of course Soren." she replied. Eglantine piped up. "I'm old enough to take care of myself." Mrs. P replied: "No dear, you still have downy feathers." "Don't remind me." she replied. Soren looked at them all. If he didn't return, then he wished them all happy lives.

* * *

Soren joined his friends at the guardian's chamber. Even now he had to admit they all looked stunning in their battle gear. Battle claws, sharp and powerful. The helmet, full of honor and pride. The lute, full of... _Wait, the lute?_ Digger saw the confused look on his friends face and spoke. "I told Twilight not to bring it, but he was persistent." He then looked at Twilight. "Why can't you just leave it?" Twilight looked appalled. "PREPOSTEROUS!" Soren rolled his eyes in amusement, the lute may have played music, but he had seen that it was a truly deadly weapon. Soren put on his battle claws and ceremonial mask, and looked on. The storm had died down; it would be easier to navigate inside it, especially with Gylfie at the helm. "Is everyone ready?" Soren asked. His friends all nodded, and Soren looked towards the dying storm, and to the journey that awaited them. "Let's go." Just as they were about to take off, a voice stopped Soren cold. "WAIT!" Soren recognized it instantly: _Otulissa!_"Oh great Glaux!" Gylfie exclaimed. Soren turned around to see Otulissa flying wildly towards them. She crashed onto the floor with a loud thud. Soren turned to his friends. "Head over to the gong tree, I'll only be a moment." Twilight snorted. "Make it fast." the three flew off. Soren overheard them talking. "How about a little music?" Twilight said. Digger immediately yelled: "NO, NO, NOT AT ALL!" He couldn't quite hear the comeback, he was focused on Otulissa.

Soren helped her off the ground. As soon as she was on her talons, she wrapped her wings around him tightly, sobbing quietly on his shoulder. "Please don't go Soren, I'm begging you, please stay." _Interesting_ he thought. _She comforts me first, and now I comfort her._Soren tenderly stroked the back of her head with his wing, carefully feeling every individual feather collide with his own. "Otulissa, I have to go, it's my duty as a Guardian to protect the kingdoms at all costs." She looked at him with tears shimmering in her eyes. "Fine, just be careful, promise me." Soren smiled. "I promise." Otulissa's face seemed to brighten a bit as she once again leaned towards him. Soren leaned in as well, their beaks were mere centimeters apart when- "OTULISSA, GET BACK TO YOUR CHAW!" Soren groaned. It was Dewlap, another chaw leader who didn't take kindly to Otulissa, or anybody for that matter. "Yes, I'm coming, your majesty!" Otulissa replied. "You use that tone with me and you have flint mops for an entire moon!" Dewlap retorted. Soren smiled at her. "Well, good luck on your chaw." he said. He turned around, but a wing spun him around. "Wha-" is all he said before her beak collided with his. Soren's eyes rolled back, as he enjoyed his first real kiss. Their tongues collided as each fought for dominance, and their gizzards seemed to become a bit warmer. When they finally disconnected, each looked into each others eyes, immersing themselves in the orange hues of color. With the largest grin on his face, Soren turned around and flew off. When he was out of earshot, Otulissa stared at his shrinking form and whispered: "I love you."

* * *

"What in Glaux's name is taking him so long?" Gylfie moaned. "He's in love with her, simple as that." Digger replied. Gylfie was intrigued. "How can you tell?" she asked. Digger replied. "I don't know, maybe how he's speechless whenever she flys by, if they brush each other by accident he nearly faints, and he can't stop staring at her, stuff like that." Gylfie was stunned. "Wow, that seems like a bit much, don't you agree?" she asked. "It's called 'Love'." Digger replied. "Have you ever been in love?" Gylfie asked. Digger began to stutter. "Um... Ye...n... Yes, yes I have." Gylfie was even more intrigued. "With whom?" she asked. Digger thought about this for a minute, about his feelings for Gylfie, and how he was constantly lost in her eyes. He knew his answer. "With-" "THERE HE IS!" Twilight bellowed. Gylfie looked relieved. "Finally, let's go!" She then took off, as Digger looked at the ground, defeated. A single tear fell on the ground as he peeped: "With you." He then joined his friends, and noticed that Soren seemed happy, REALLY happy. "Are you ok?" he asked. Soren replied dreamily: "Never better." Digger looked confused as he muttered under his breath. "Well, ok then."

* * *

The St. Aegolius canyons seemed to darken under the moon's powerful glare, yet the great horned owl watching above could still see as owlet after owlet came in. The Pure Ones had occupied this place, but as fate had it, the Guardians defeated them, and this place was ripe for the taking. A western screech owl, white in color, landed in front of her. "Skench." he said simply. "What do you want Spoorn?" she asked. "We've found the flecks." he said. Skench swiped her wings across his face, hard. He went sprawling on the floor, grunting in pain. "Well what are you waiting for, find a way to harvest them!" she sneered. Spoorn flew off immediately. Skench looked on at the Pure One's old base, no, it was HER new base. She was the Ablah General now. _When I am ready, all of the owl kingdoms will fall beneath my rage._ A malicious smile formed on her beak. _Even the great Guardians of Ga'hoole can't stop me now!_

**A.N: For those who don't know, Skench and Spoorn are actual characters from the books, in fact they are the first MAIN villains before the Pure Ones show up. I thought I should incorporate them into the story, they play a bigger part than you know ;-) Hope you enjoyed, review please, any questions, just PM me. Adios. Le review arrow. (Or point I guess.)  
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	7. A Journey 'Twas Fortold

**WHAT'S UP, EVERYBODY? Jeez, been a while since I've updated. Don't worry, I'm not losing inspiration. (Although, only two reviews last chapter left me a little disheartened. Thank you Crazybird101 for taking the time to review. :-) This chapter took A LOT for me to do, I had NO IDEA how to begin the journey, but next chapter I know where the story is headed. I hope you enjoy. (Also, anonymous reviews are now accepted. No flames, you know the deal.) Enjoi. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.  
**

** Chapter 6**

With Gylfie at the helm, the band had no trouble navigating through the storm. Through the mists, the band found their way to the outskirts of Cape Glaux, from there, they would cross to Ambala, and onward to the St. Aggies canyons. Gylfie looked behind her to see the great expanse of the Hoolamire Sea. _We might never see this again._ she thought to herself. But she couldn't think like that. She was a Guardian, and the plan had to work if she was to see the sight again. She thought out the plan in her head._ If we can cross the Barrens, we might be able to_- "THE BAND HAS RETURNED!" Gylfie lost her balance in pure fright, and crashed onto one of the many pillars that covered the shores. "Gylfie!" Digger yelled as he began to fly toward her. Gylfie could only stare at the figure in front of her. Covered in spines painted blue, with a large waking stick, and a long snout that was too close for comfort. "Glaux almighty, you MUST be joking!" she exclaimed. "Twas foretold you would land in front of me, Navigator." "Echidna?" Soren asked as the rest of his friends touched down onto the pillar. "I am THE echidna, and it was foretold that you would return to my shore."

Soren saw Gylfie roll her eyes, she had always believed that the echidna was somewhat insane, claiming to know the future while sharing his home with crows of all creatures. "Ah, the doubter rolls her eyes at me, 'twas foretold." the echidna stated. "We were just on our way if you don't mind." Digger stated. Gylfie flashed a smile at him; he always had her back when it came to the echidna. "You seek the canyons of St. Aegolius." the echidna stated. Soren and his friends all stared in disbelief at the echidna, how could he possibly know of the plan? It was Gylfie who voiced their concerns. "How could you possibly know that?" she asked. The echidna smiled at her. "It was foretold." he said.

"Please echidna, tell us what the future holds, will we succeed?" Soren asked. The echidna looked upon them with a sullen look. "The future isn't certain, but your destinies have always been intertwined. I've told you that the band would become a family, and as foretold, a family you have become." The echidna's face then took on a look of happiness. "Take care of each other," he then seemed to look only at Digger and Gylfie. "And follow your hearts." Digger took a nervous glance at Gylfie, while Soren and Twilight just chuckled to themselves, leaving Gylfie in utter confusion. "Now go, leave this place and fly!" the echidna stated before waddling back towards his makeshift den. Soren looked at his friends, the ones he knew he could trust, the ones who would always be at his side. "Alright, let's go." Soren said as his friends took to the sky. The echidna peeked out from his hole to see the four owls fly away. One of the crows cawed as a fifth owl made its appearance. "Ah, it was foretold you would follow the band. I trust you know where they are going."

* * *

From Silverveil to The Barrens, the band flew with amazing speed, crossing into the kingdom of Ambala in a mere two weeks. But as the weeks dragged on, the great 'Chaw of Chaws' needed a rest. They all stopped at a small stream, the air was cooler, and sunrise was nearly upon them. Gylfie flew toward the stream to wash herself, while the rest of them huddled in a great oak tree. Strangely, Twilight seemed nervous. "I'm telling you, there is someone following us!" Twilight said to them. "You said that when we left Cape Glaux." Digger yawned. "I really doubt an owl would follow us this far." Digger continued. Twilight sighed. "Fine, well how about some music to put us all to sleep?" Digger sighed and decided to wash up himself, he was incredibly dirty. _This is what I get for digging for bugs all the damn time._Digger thought to himself.

When he got to the edge of the stream he was suddenly aware of the the sound of sniffling, and small gasps, as if someone was crying. Pushing aside the brushes, Digger saw Gylfie, shaking, with her tears dabbing the water below her. "What *Sniff* are you doing here?" she asked. He slowly padded to her. "I was going to wash myself, but now I want to know what YOU are doing here." he asked, giving her a small smile. "I'm just scared, Digger. Soren and I BARELY escaped St. Aggies, we lost a brave owl that just wanted to help us, and now it's being occupied by owls that could be even worse for all we know!" She stated before she started to hyperventilate. Seeing her like this scared Digger greatly, he didn't take the time to truly think about his friend's time at St. Aggies, the knowledge that all those innocent owlets would never see their parents again, and would spend the remainder of their lives as mindless servants for those who wanted to inflict nothing but pain on others.

Digger embraced her in his wings, comforting her by swiping his wings in her forehead. Her tears began to dampen his feathers, yet his touch comforted her, and she managed to form a small smile. "You know I only knew my parents for a month." Digger said. "Really?" Gylfie asked. "When I came out of the egg, I was loved, with my two brothers. Then one day, two long eared owls came and tried to take me." Tears seemed to form in his eyes. "My brothers sacrificed themselves so I could get away. I lived on my own for two years, cold, alone, unloved." He then looked at Gylfie and gave her a small smile. "Twilight found me soon after, he took me in as his own, I've lived with him for five years, I can never repay him for that." Gylfie looked at Digger in a different light, he used to be as lonely as she and Soren were at St. Aggies, she didn't know what happened to her parents, but he actually lost his entire family. Twilight was his true family now.

Digger began. "Listen Gylfie, I want you to know-" "AHA, THERE YOU ARE!" Twilght's triumphant voice ran out across the trees. "What in Glaux's name happened?" Digger asked. "I don't know." Gylfie answered before they both flew towards Twilight's voice. Illuminated by a small fire was Twilight, who held in his talons a short-eared owl, but with its head covered with a black cloth that prevented it's face to be seen. Soren was the one to ask the questions. "Who are you, and why are you following us?" The owl was silent. "I've had enough of this." Twilight said before ripping off the cloth with his talons to reveal _Otulissa?_The spotted owl shook the dust off of her and looked at the four owls. "I needed to come, I couldn't let you leave knowing you might never come back!" she said, giving Soren a pleading look. "So, are we even a part of the conversation?" Digger muttered under his breath. Soren looked appalled. "Why did you do this? You could be killed on this journey!" Otulissa only smiled before embracing him. Soren couldn't help but smile back as he returned the embrace. Gylfie sighed. "Well, I guess we have five members now, I'm going to sleep." Twilight and Digger followed her, but Soren stayed with Otulissa, enjoying the time they had together. "You know I will never live with myself if you get hurt." he said. Otulissa's head sprang forward to his in a surprise kiss, and as before, Soren nearly fainted in delight. Breaking away, Otulissa only smiled. "I don't think you will allow that to happen." Soren smiled back. "No, I guess not."

* * *

Lightning spread across the dark clouds covering the sky. Ash and dust filled the air as huge gusts of wind cut across the wasteland below. Whatever forest was there was quickly burned away as blazing infernos gave the land a harsh red glow. Soren found it hard to breath, as his lungs slowly began to fill with ash. He looked upon the wasteland in horror. "Where am I?" he asked himself. "It's been called many names throughout the ages." a menacing female voice said. Turning around, Soren saw before him a crow, but a strange crow. "The Others first called this 'The Underworld', then it was referred to as 'Hell', but I think you will know this place as Hagsmire."

What was left of its feathers wore a dull grey color, ragged, and full of ash and dust. Its neck and chest had no feathers whatsoever, as if they were picked apart. Its feet wore huge, rusted battle claws, stained with dried blood. Pink flesh lined with scars showed a creature that was no stranger to battle. Its chest seemed to glow a dull blue, as whips of some strange substance whipped across it's belly. It's bright, yellow eyes seemed to burn into his very being, sending shivers of fear coursing through him. On the creature's head was a helmet, dark blue and full of strange symbols. In the middle lay a stone, bright blue and pulsing with power. Soren's gizzard seemed to turn to stone as he looked at the object, he had seen this object before, and the very sight of it filled him with dread. _Flecks._Soren thought. Apparently the creature had INGESTED the flecks with the way its stomach glowed. The female creature chuckled to itself, with a sound like bones snapping apart. "My kind lives and we grow stronger each day. The world you live in belongs to us, and NOTHING shall stand in our way, not even you!"

Behind her, a barn owl appeared, wearing a great mask of power. _Metalbeak's mask! _Soren realized. The owl's eyes shone a dark red, like every other Pure One he had seen. "This owl is closer to you than you think, he is one of us, you are one of us, the race of all Tytos has always been connected to us." the creature said, gesturing to the new owl. The owl's eyes suddenly began to glow a bright yellow, the same as the crow-like creature before him. The creature spoke again. "Sooner or later, all creatures return to their roots, all it takes is a little rage." She then gestured to the fleck on her head with her wing. "Do you know what happens when you are exposed to this stone for years?" Soren was to terrified to answer. "They become Nachtmagen, and that is where we live in you." The masked owl behind her began to change even further, its white wings began take on a darker appearance, as grey spread across its entire body. The owl suddenly faded away, collapsing into a pile of ash. The creature smiled at Soren. "I think it's time for you to wake up."

The creature then gave a shrill screech that filled Soren's ears. A haunting howl echoed across the wasteland, and Soren's gizzard became clenched in fear. Suddenly, a new monster appeared behind the Crow-like creature. The huge monster was a barn owl, black in color, with a pale white face with a straight, dark line down the middle. The creature gave a loud shriek, and Soren watched in horror as the monster's face split in two, a bloody mass of muscle and bone, with tendrils of flesh trying to connect the sides of its head. Out of the gory mass came a large, fleshy tongue with a single razor sharp blade at the end of it. Its jaws acting like mandibles, the creature shrieked as lightning split across the dark sky. Soren tried to move, but he found himself unable to move, as if he was frozen in place. The Split-Face's head connected back in place, so Soren could see its emotionless, black eyes. Its head tearing apart again, the monster spread its wings, and leapt at him.

* * *

Soren woke up with a jolt, the Split-Faced monster was gone, and he was surrounded by his tree friends, and his beloved. The strange crow had flecks and 'Nachtmagen' as she called it. Of all the legends his father had told him, none had told him about Nachtmagen, or Hagsmire for that matter. Strangely, it was the dark owl that truly worried him, it had looked so familiar, and he seemed to have met the owl before. _He looked like the owl from..._ Soren thought. _He's the owl from the first dream!_ Soren realized. _But that would mean that the owl is... Kludd?_ It didn't make any sense, Kludd was dead. Yet two dreams with the samd version of his brother told him otherwise. _Could he have survived the fire?_ Soren asked himself. He had no answer; all he knew was that he had a mission to do. He was not the owlet St. Aggies had captured, He was a Guardian, and he would fulfill his oath: To make strong the week, mend the broken, and vanquish evil. He turned to Otulissa, and smiled before he kissed her forehead, despite everything, he was truly glad to have her by his side. He pressed his head to hers before whispering: "I love you." He closed his eyes, ready for sleep to claim him again. "I love you too." a soothing voice whispered to him. Soren's eyes went wide as he turned to Otulissa, who was wide awake. She gave him a loving smile. "Ever since you risked your life to rescue the guardians, I knew I loved you." Soren could only smile as he leaned in and gave her a long, passionate kiss. Soon both were lost in each other, both of them no longer close friends, but lovers. As their beaks broke away from each other, Otulissa rubbed against him as she fell asleep in his wings. The sun had begun to rise, and as Soren began to fall into slumber, his smile faded. Tomorrow, this moment would be the only thing keeping him going, for before them lied the St. Aegolies canyons, and with it, their newest threat. Soren finally fell asleep, just as the sun began to cast its glory across the sky.

**A.N: This is the turning point of the story, after this is where everything comes into play. :-) I want to have Kludd in some of the next few chapters, BUT NO PROMISES. Also, if you want to see the inspiration of 'Split-Face' look up "Splithead Owl" by Earldense at DA. He has amazing, haunting work. You will not regret it. :-) I'll try to update more frequently. Please review, any questions, PM me. Adios, le review point.**

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	8. The Most Dreadful Place on Earth

**What is up everyone. NEW RULE: The more reviews I get, the faster I'll update. I only got 1 review last chapter. (Which I greatly appreciate, love you Crazybird101 :-) This chapter doesn't reveal anything new, nevertheless I hope you enjoy. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 7  
**

Eglantine was curious. Curious about life, death, and war. The scrolls and books that lined the library's walls told stories of courage, discovery, and even the great Glaux himself. "Do we need to do this now?" her friend Primrose stated. "Yeah," her friend Pete piped up. "The last thing I want to do right now is hear about war, let alone read about it." Eglantine sighed. Despite only knowing her for less than a month, the pigmy owl had grown to become Eglantine's best friend. She had been the first one to truely comfort her when her brother left on his 'chaws'. When Soren wasn't around, Primrose and Eglantine were practically inseparable. Pete on the other hand had a different story altogether. He, like her brother and Gylfie, was captured by St. Aggies, and like herself, became moonblinked. Thankfully, he and all the other owlets were freed from their trance, and had become a common sight at the great tree. For whatever reason, Pete had tagged along with Eglantine and Primrose, not that it mattered to them.

"Why do you want to learn about this stuff?" Primrose asked. "I'm just curious." she replied. The REAL reason she looked through all the books was to find out about war. She hated it, but what she truly hated about it was what it did to Kludd. True, Kludd wasn't the nicest of all brothers, but like Soren, he was always there to support her, to comfort her, to love her. The owl that moonblinked her was NOT her brother. That owl had been seduced by war and power, and Eglantine wanted to know why it held so much power. There were two problems with her little quest. First: Most of the books depicting war were cast out, to help retain a bit of peace at the Ga'hoole tree. Second: she could barely read.

Pete was the one to voice this flaw. "You can't even read properly, you're just an owlet." A gruff chuckle took all of them by surprise, as a screech owl landed by the trio. Ezylryb, the leader of the navigation chaw. "Don't forget that it was not us guardians who saved you, but mere owlets such as yourselves." Pete tried to scramble around for words. "Well...I, uh..., didn't mean..." All Ezylryb could do was chuckle at the owlet's nervousness.

He then turned to Eglantine. "What are you reading about?" he asked. It was now her turn to panic. "I'm just, uh, skimming it?" she stated. Ezylryb turned the book over and read the title. "'Legacy of The Others.', hmm, interesting subject." Primrose seemed generally confused. "Who are The Others?" she asked. "That is the big question, isn't it? Who are they, what did they do, what remains?" _Here we go with the stories... Again._She thought to herself. "The Others, from what the tales say, were much like us, noble, intelligent, and ruthless. In fact, maybe even more than us, Cape Glaux, The Beaks, even the passageway to the Great Tree are the ruins of the Others creations. The Others had the ability to shape the world around them." Pete seemed unconvinced. "So if they were so powerful, why are they gone?" he asked. Ezylryb seemed to anticipate the very question. "The legends told us that one day the sky grew dark, and the world became cold, and our kind hid and flourished in the shelters we created. When the light shone once again, the Others were no more."

"So no one knows what happened to them?" Pete asked. "No," Ezylryb replied. "But I do know that you missed a very special flint mop last night, and I think you might have to make it up." Pete sighed. "Glaux help me." he said before walking out of the library. Ezylryb turned to the duo. "You can do whatever you please, but I would like a word with you Eglantine." Primrose walked away, looking closely at the romance scrolls. Ezylryb gave Eglantine a hard stare. "So why are you here?" he asked. "To understand war." she replied matter-of-frankly. "Why would you want to know about it?" he demanded. "Because no matter how much I deny it, war has affected everybody here: you, Soren," "Stop." he interrupted. "It is true, war affects everyone, but don't worry about it just yet, your still an owlet, enjoy it." he said before flying off, leaving her alone. _Where is Digger when you need him, I could use a good joke.  
_

* * *

He hated this place, more than any place in the world, even more than his Hagsmire dreams, he hated St. Aegolies. Jagged peaks rose from a large canyon, covered in a thick blanket of fog. On the top of one of the peaks was a red flag with the Pure One symbol, it was torn apart. "Are you ok?" Otulissa asked. "The sooner we leave, the better I'll be." Soren answered. Digger, Gylfie, and Twilight padded up next to them, taking in the dreadful sight. Soren turned to his friends; he saw their pained faces, especially Gylfie's face. "Ok, Me, Gylfie, and Digger will pose as owlets. Twilight and Otulissa will stay up in the cliffs; they don't seem to be inhabited." He gestured to the high cliffs surrounding the canyon, honeycombed with holes that could serve as makeshift hollows.

"You two will act as scouts, in case any trouble occurs, you will be backup, and we will meet there before we leave." Twilight padded up to Soren. "Good luck to you; come on Ochluisa." Otulissa rolled her eyes, before embracing Soren. "Make sure you come back." she said. "Make sure you stay safe." he replied before their beaks met again for a kiss. Twilight nudged Otulissa, disturbing the couple. "Well come on then." he said before taking off. The duo took off, leaving the remaining three to the mission. "Come on." Soren said before taking off.

Digger spread his wings, but stopped when he saw Gylfie, standing deathly still. He walked up to her, nudging her. "What's the matter?" he asked. "I'm not going." she said. "We have to, it's our-" "No." Gylfie interrupted. "I'm not going through it again, not when more of my friends could get hurt." "We're Guardians, we can handle it." Gylfie's eyes welled up with tears."I can't lose any of you, you all mean too much to me." Digger embraced her once again. "If we succeed, then we will never see this place again. You'll be free." Gylfie seemed to smile a little, and tightened her grip on Digger. "Hey, come on then!" Soren's voice called out. "You ready?" he asked. She responded by kissing the side of his face. "Thank you." she said as she took to the sky. He soon followed, with his heart practically beating out of his chest.

* * *

Spoorn looked out across St. Aggies, as owlet after owlet came into the moonblinking chamber. Guards lined the walls, while not as organized as the Pure Ones, they were a formidable force. The sound of desperate flapping caught him off guard. "Spoorn!" the guard cried before standing before him. "What is it Unk?" The guard seemed at a loss for words. "Three owlets were spotted outside the canyons." Spoorn chuckled to himself. "Probably got separated from their parents, get two others to get them." The guard bowed. "Yes sir." As the guard flew away, Spoorn continued to chuckle. _Now owlets are literally seeking us out, this seems almost too easy._

* * *

The trio could barely see through the fog. It was so thick that visibility was completely out of the question. "This is worse than the mists." Gylfie stated. "At least our wings aren't frozen solid." Digger replied. Soren tried to look, but all he saw was stone and fog. "How are we supposed to navigate through this?" he asked himself. No one replied. Without warning, Soren lost his footing, and careened across a steep slope. "SOREN!" his friends cried as he lost all sense of direction. He barely had time to spread his wings before he plummeted to the ground.

His entire body ached in pain, he was certain something was broken within him. "GUYS. ARE YOU THERE?" he yelled, but to his surprise, no one answered. Shaking off a light coat of dust, Soren began to spread his wings. _Soren._ A single voice echoed across the mists. Soren looked around in shock, looking for the source. _You cannot hide; we will meet sooner than you think_. The voice was dark and menacing, yet vaguely familiar. The voice seemed to echo all around him, becoming louder at each passing second. _Soren. Soren. Soren._ The voice chanted. He couldn't stand it any longer. "WHERE ARE YOU?" he screamed. _Turn around_. The voice said, closer than ever. Obeying, Soren saw a massive barn owl with a metal mask. Soren couldn't help but gasp; it was the same owl that haunted his dreams, still carrying the same haunting stare. "What do you want from me?" Soren questioned. The masked owl didn't respond, but instead grabbed onto his mask and removed it. Soren's gizzard became embedded in stone, his fears had been confirmed. "Kludd?" His brother's bleak, red eyes began to change into a shade of yellow. Kludd opened his beak. Soren was expecting a screech, but that was not what came out, it was far worse. The sound that emitted from his brother's throat was terrifying to behold. It was the wail a lover would make when its partner died before its eyes. It was the death chant a maniac would use before drawing blood. It was the sound of a predator shrieking as it dove for the kill. It was the sound of the wail as the mind dissolved into dust. As his brother wailed he began to dissolve into a swirling cloud of darkness, his yellow eyes burning into his essence. As he completely dissolved, Soren was aware of another owl taking his brothers place. This one was joined by two more owls, in their talons they held- _Digger and Gylfie?_ The long eared owl only chuckled as he moved closer. "Looks like you three strayed too far from home." Before Soren could react, the owl flew at him, pinning him to the ground. The last thing Soren saw was his massive body smashing into his face before everything turned black.

**A.N: Sorry if the chapter is short, I couldn't find any way to prolong it, but I hope you are enjoying my dream/hallucination/nightmare sequences. Because I'm having a BLAST writing them. My birthday was on the 10th of July, so I feel good. PLEASE, PLEASE review, more I get, the less time YOU have waiting for updates. :-p See ya guys.**

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	9. St Aggies

**Hey guys, I'm so sorry for the delay. You're reviews were fantastic, so I've decided to spoil you all a bit by giving you: (Drum-roll)KLUDD! I've decided to include him so that you all would see how he's doing. PLUS: I've made my first OC, he comes at the end of the chapter. Without delay, enjoi. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians. If I did, I'd get the damn sequel out already. :-****\**

**Chapter 8**

The attack came far sooner than he expected, but he was prepared. With his broken wing now healed, Kludd dodged Nyra's attack with ease. Her glare was off putting, full of anger, and admiration. "You have strength Kludd, but you must counterbalance that strength with speed." Without warning, she leapt at him again, talons armed.

With determination in his eyes, Kludd grabbed ahold of her oncoming talons with his own, locking them together. Using all his strength, Kludd threw Nyra to the ground, with his talons digging into her neck. His look of hard determination was greeted by a smile. "Excellent work, you've shown you have what it takes to be in our ranks, and I think you are more than prepared for your mission." Kludd released her, and bowed to her. "I am thankful to hear that." he said. She stroked his head with her wing. "Leave with Ulgamore for scouting. We leave in a week's time; I want to make sure we are safe for travel." His head jerked up almost immediately. "Of course." was all he said before he turned and flew away.

Nyra was truly proud. In the month since his return, Kludd had truly become worthy to be in their ranks, his strength and skills had improved exceptionally. But all the while, she was afraid. Nix's death had truly frightened her, no owl deserved to die in that manner. But what frightened her most was the way he acted after the fight, his distorted voice, yellow eyes, and his malicious laugh was unnatural, even demonic. Nyra herself had never paid any attention to 'Hagsfiends' or 'Hagsmire' for that matter. None of it mattered; all that mattered now was Kludd. The training had seemed to pay off, he was ready. As she looked out from the canyon wall, she couldn't help but admire herself for making it this far, even without her beloved. _One day, I will make you proud, that I can promise, my love._

* * *

When Soren regained consciousness he only saw darkness, and a thick stench filled his nostrils. "Great Glaux, what is that smell?" he asked himself. "He's awake." he heard a familiar voice reply. "Digger, is that you?" "No, its Pinocchio." he answered back. Soren was confused. "Who's Pinocchio?" Digger replied back. "I have no idea, some insane owl kept calling me it, and he kept singing music about wishing on STARS for Glaux's sake!" _Hmm, odd_. Soren thought. "What happened?" he asked. "As soon as you fell, they came for us, one moment I see a huge shadow, the next I'm in here talking to you." Digger answered. "Where's Gylfie?" Soren asked. "She's still out cold, but she's ok." Without warning, a stone slab was pushed away, letting in a blinding ray of light into the room. The same owl that attacked him came into view, with a look of disgust on his face. "EVERYBODY UP!" he yelled. Normally Soren would have taken his battle stance, but these were different circumstances, he was a prisoner.

Digger carried Gylfie on his back as they padded over to another chamber. Although Soren had been here before, he could already sense something was off. Everything seemed disorganized; the warriors here didn't even seem interested in them. It wouldn't surprise Soren if they could escape by simply walking off. The trio was joined by a larger group consisting entirely of owlets. His heart was clouded with dread at the sounds of their cries. "Where's ma and da?", "What's gonna happen to us?" they said.

By the time they got to the main chamber, Gylfie had awakened. She took one look around the room, remembering Nyra's malicious stare as she dubbed her and Soren 'Pickers'. "I suppose I don't need an update on our situation." she said with dread. Before either of them could answer, a terrible shriek filled the room. On Nyra's old podium came two owls. One was a Western Screech owl, pure white on color. The other looked truly fearsome. Beside the Western Screech was a brown Great Horned owl, with bright yellow eyes that sent shivers down his spine. The sunset behind them was waning, making the two owls look even more deadly.

The Great Horned owl smiled at the owlets, which made Soren even more nervous. "I am Skench, the Ablah general of St. Aegolius." she then gestured to the white owl next to her. "And this is my first lieutenant, his name is Spoorn, I think you and him will become very close." _Skench and Spoorn. So these are the ones we've been looking for._ Skenck gave a fake look of sorrow. "I am deeply sorry to say that this place is meant for orphans, and that's what you have become. You are all orphans now, but here at St. Aggies, your new home awaits." All the owlets seemed to wail at the very thought of an orphanage, Soren however was silent, he needed to know why they were doing this. _I suppose it's time to choose between Soldier or Picker_. He couldn't have been more wrong. Skench turned to the owlets again. "Now, all of you will be divided into three groups, and each will get their own 'Parent'. They shall teach you the difference between right and wrong, and will make your new home all the sweeter." Spoorn glided down to the crowd. "Now, this group will come with me." he said as he gestured to the owlets on the far side. He then gestured to the group in the middle, containing Soren. "This group will be with Finny." He then turned to the final group, with Digger and Gylfie. "And you all will go with Tumak." Soren looked at his friends in fear, this wasn't supposed to happen, this was completely different than before. As his group was taken away, Soren couldn't hold back the growing sense of dread in his gizzard.

* * *

Soren watched as owlet after owlet was introduced to a Snowy owl, looking more thick than the great queen Barran. Each owlet that came to her was presented with a number, like 13-6 or 18-0, it was ridiculous. When Soren stepped in front of her, he was overcome with fear. He wanted a malicious, dreadful tone to her, but all that came out was a soothing mother-like voice. It sickened him. "Well hello there dearie." she said. "Hello Finny." Soren replied back. Finny shook her head. "Tsk, Tsk, don't call me that, you can call me 'Auntie', I like that name a lot better, don't you?" _I think it's the most dreadful name in all the owl kingdoms besides 'Metalbeak' if you ask me!_ he screamed inside his mind, but all that came out was a simple "Yes." "That's wonderful." she replied with fake enthusiasm. She got closer to him, her eyes burning into his own. "I have the perfect number for you, it's a little thing called 12-1. How does that sound?" she asked. _Dreadful._ "It sounds absolutely wonderful." he replied. "I'm glad to hear it, here's a little award for being so wonderful." Upon saying that, she picked up a small chunk of mouse meat and handed it to him with her talons. "Now get some rest 12-1, you'll need it." He only nodded as he devoured the mouse, if this place was anything like the old St. Aggies, then tomorrow was going to be a _long _night.

* * *

Digger barely paid attention to Tumak, he didn't even remember his own number, all he focused on was Gylfie's safety. He had gotten separated in the groups scuffle, and she was far ahead if him. It was nearly an hour by the time he got his number, he padded over to her, and what he saw, he didn't like. Gylfie was talking to another elf owl, sleek, clearly as old as themselves, and male. And Gylfie had the largest smile on her face he had ever seen. "Ahem." Digger coughed. Gylfie turned to him in surprise. "Oh Digger, I was just talking to my new friend, his name is Cobalt." The newcomer smiled. "See, it's the color of my eyes." "I can defiantly see that." While owls like Gylfie had clear yellow eyes, her 'new friend' had eyes of tainted blue. "Well, I guess I'll see you around Gylfie." he said before kissing her cheek.

The very sight made Digger full of anger, but his calm persona kept him at bay. "Isn't he just amazing?" Gylfie said with dreamy eyes. "You do realize I was gone for an hour?" "Best hour of my life." _That's it._ "Gylfie, we're here to do a job, we can't just make relationships with every owl we meet." Gylfie turned to him, but her eyes blazed with hostility. "Who are you to decide what I do?" "Apparently I have to be the one to knock some sense into you; we can't afford to fail if you're making love-eyes at a bird you just met." Gylfie walked past him, but not before butting against him. Hard. "Fine." she sneered, with all the venom that could ever be in a voice. Digger recovered from the push and snorted in anger. "All right my little owlets, let's get some sleep, we've got a long night tomorrow. Digger slumped to the ground, and didn't even bother to clean the tears welling up in his eyes.

**A.N: I really need to make my chapters longer. Hope you enjoyed my OC, He's going to play a BIG part in this. For Gylfie and Digger anyway ;-) HUGE APOLOGY to fans of the book, I remembered too late that Spoorn is a FEMALE, and I made her a MALE! *GASP* I was going to change ALL of it, but then I thought: Eh, they screwed up a lot of characters in the movie, and this is my sequel to it. Sorry. Please review, I greatly appreciate it. Adios.**

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	10. To Fear the Moon

**Alright, If I make another short chapter, I swear I'll kill myself. Sorry for the long update, 2 reasons why. 1: I have a tendency to procrastinate. 2: I came across the dreaded Writers Block! I was also pleasantly surprised to see a TON of new reviews... except that it turned out to be a conversation between my fellow authors Crazybird101 and Shen's General. Guys, I'm fine with the conversations, no need to worry. Without further ado, let chapter 9 begin! Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 9**

"Alright, move it in, my little owlets."

Soren narrowed his eyes. He hated being called an 'owlet'. He was a guardian, a warrior. But if the plan was to work, he would need to play along.

The sun had already gone down, huge groups of owlets were converging on each other, and 'Auntie' was waiting for his group at the top of a small ledge. Her smile aggravated Soren, she seemed to relish the idea of warping these innocent minds into oblivion. "Now, let's all be good little owls and close our eyes." He couldn't look around for Gylfie or Digger, so he had no choice but to obey.

"Now, I want all of you, to say your names." Almost immediately, a chorus of inaudible noise filled the cavern, as name after name blended together. "That's it, keep saying it!" Finny yelled. Soren was greatly confused. The Pure Ones had only have the owlets sleep under the moon, not chant their names.

_Gylfie, Digger, I hope you know what to do._Soren thought as he began to chant his number, instead of his name.

Soon the voices began to waver, as owlets across the cavern began to sleep. Soren closed his eyes, but he wouldn't dare fall into sleep. Instead, his mind wandered to a tale his father had told him, a tale that calmed him during his first outing with the Pure Ones. _Once upon a very long time ago, in the time of Glaux, there was an order of knightly owls, from the kingdom of Ga'hoole, who would rise each night into the darkness and perform noble deeds..._

* * *

Gylfie didn't know what Digger was doing to combat the moonblinking strategy, and she didn't care. How dare he try and take command of her life, why couldn't he be more like Cobalt? True, they had just met only hours ago, but she could feel a TRUE connection with him. He was of her age and species, handsome, and was pure at heart. She looked across the cavern at him, and he gave her the most loving smile.

That's why it pained her to not have him by her side; she needed to warn him about the dangers of moonblinking. _Well he seems smart, he can figure it out._She reassured herself. She remained silent throughout the whole ordeal, and for once, praying for Glaux to bring back the sun.

* * *

Otulissa once again ignored Twilight's pleas to have faith, but she couldn't. Soren, _her_Soren, was in danger. Why couldn't he let her help him? She could take care of herself, and his lack of presence tore at her heart.

"For the last time, they'll be fine. I'd play a song for you, but talking is risky in itself." Otulissa needed to take her mind off of Soren, otherwise she would continue to worry, and do something reckless.

"Twilight, how can you be this way, when Digger is out there?" Twilight gave a long sigh. "You don't think I'm not afraid? Digger is practically my son, I would die for him, but this is his choice, just as much as it is Soren's."

It was now Otulissa's turn to sigh. If she was having troubles, she could only imagine what the Guardians at the Ga'hoole tree were feeling right now.

* * *

Boron was nervous. The silence was deafening. For as long as he lived, the great tree had been protected by the mists. Only the strong of heart could navigate through the mists, but tonight was different. The mists were gone.

Boron wasn't nervous of the disappearance of the mists, he was nervous of an enemy attack. Soron and his friends had not returned, and this mysterious new enemy could strike at any moment. _Don't be silly, never before has an enemy attacked the great tree, and none shall attack this night.  
_  
"What troubles cloud your thoughts, my husband?"

"With you by my side, troubles are unable to come."

Barran gave her husband a look of disbelief. "Flattering."

Boron chuckled, wrapping a wing around his wife. It was moments like these that reminded him of the joys of life.

He was so lost in thought that he was barely able to see a strange figure flying towards the tree. He watched with suspicion as the figure flew past the watch posts, and smashed into the tree's central square.

"Get help, quick!" He ordered Barran as he took to the sky.

* * *

Eglantine didn't want to dream. Every time she closed her eyes, she was staring into the eyes of Soren, covered in deep gashes that were stuffed with flecks. His eyes pleaded for help, but she was rooted to the spot, she could do nothing but watch him die.

It was dreams like these that made her fear for her brother's life. He was strong and brave, but would that be enough?

Her thoughts were interrupted by her father. "Come along Eglantine, we have to go." "What's wrong?" she asked. It was her mother who answered. "A newcomer has found the tree, he seems to be hurt, and we are going to reassure him."

_A newcomer?_ She questioned. She wasted no time following her parents to the growing group of owls surrounding the newcomer's body.

"Everyone ease up, one at a time!" Madame Plonk yelled. Eglantine couldn't see the new arrival well, but he looked strangely familiar.

She was suddenly aware of the muffled sobs of her mother.

"Can it be, Noctus?"

"It has to be." he answered.

It was here that she got her first look at the newcomer. The face was covered in burns. Its feathers were a tangled mess, and deep scars seemed to line every visible muscle on his body. But it was when it opened its eyes that her gizzard became deathly cold. With a smirk on its face, the owl looked at her and spoke. "It's nice to see you again."

"Kludd?"

**A.N: Hope you enjoyed that little cliffhanger. ;-P. READ: The stuff at the Ga'hoole tree at the end IS NOT happening at the same time as St. Aggies. just wanted to point that out. Please review, I greatly appreciate it. Till next time, Adios.**

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	11. Eternal Oblivion

**What's up? Glad to finally be back, so glad to have the awesome feedback. I wanna dive a shoutout to Shen's General, author of Between Brothers, and Crazybird101. Support from people like them makes writing these chapter incredibly fun, thank you both! If you haven't checked out Between Brothers, DO IT NOW! Also: Thank you Shen's General for the ideas you gave me about nightmare sequences. QUICK NOTES: The graphic scene from Ch.4, and the stuff in this chapter, has made me change the rating to M. If you're squeamish about rape, please skip to "Soren only.." Other than that, let's continue! Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians, but I do own Cobalt.**

**Chapter 10 **

Cobalt expected pleasant dreams. They never came. What manifested in his mind was a everlasting poison, a corrosive acid, everlasting oblivion. This feeling was not new to Cobalt; most of his nights in the Kuneer desert were spent arguing with his parents, wishing they were dead, them wishing the same to him. The only connection he had was his sister, and she rarely spoke with him.

So it was refreshing when he was 'owl napped' by the new owls. It didn't even matter to him if they were 'unfriendly', after 16 years of his life only seeing his Glaux-forsaken parents; it was nice to have a new face saying these things to you.

So it was absolutely astounding when he met Gylfie, who was actually kind to him. Gylfie was unlike any owl he had met, she was smart, beautiful, and had the largest of hearts. He would call himself crazy, but he was certain that he was in love with her.

So why we're his dreams filled with hate and pain? All he had done was repeat his name to the moon like the leaders instructed. Now he saw things that seemed to come straight out of Hagsmire.

He saw his mother, blood all over her feathers, devouring Gylfie's corpse. Her beak digging into the soft flesh as blood dripped all around him. Gylfie's eyes opened, only to have his mother claw at them, spilling more gore onto the ground.

The image dissolved, but the new one that took place was even worse than before. In the middle of the room lay his sister, wings torn apart, legs snapped to pieces, and blood dripping from her beak. Out of the darkness came his father, eyes glowing blood red. He went over to his sister, and began to lick the blood of her feathers. She began to shriek, but was quickly stopped when her father pressed his beak to her own. He then saw him do the unthinkable: his father mounted his sister, and they began to mate.

Cobalt could only watch in horror as his father's long tongue slithered inside her mouth while sliding his cloaca inside of her. His sister was practically paralyzed, and his feet were planted to the ground as their own father thrust into her. As his thrusts increased, he began to run his talons across her bare flesh, spilling blood all over the floor. When his father reached his climax, the slashes that now dotted her body began to leak a thick, white fluid. Wherever his seed touched her body, it began to mold and decompose. By the time he dismounted her, she was nothing but a pile of rotting flesh.

As the scene dissipated, Cobalt's head began to throb with pain. The pain was if someone was digging its talons into his mind, and ripping out his memories. He couldn't remember anything. His birth, his first branching, all ripped from his mind, like flesh off a bone.

The last thing he saw was the moon itself. Without warning, it began to crack open as small pieces of glowing blue stone fell from the sky. The stones vibrated with energy and raw power, whenever one touched him, a massive shockwave spread across his mind. All the demons came out in full force, death, rape, Gylfie, memories gone forever. As the flecks fell, his name was chanted. _Cobalt...Cobalt...14-3... 14-3_By the time the fifth fleck fell upon him, his mind had become nothing but a bleak, exhausted void.

* * *

Soren only needed to pretend like he had been sleeping, fluttering his eyes and yawning would convince any owl. It was dawn, sunlight passing over the jagged peaks like a blazing fire. He looked around at the other owlets, prepared for the feeling of guilt of seeing them in their moonblinked state.

He was beyond surprised when he saw the owlets. They were... awake...normal. It _can't be true._he thought. He turned to the owl next to him, who seemed to be smiling.

"Ansel? Are you alright?" Ansel merely smiled. "Perfect." he whispered. This couldn't be right, moonblinking wasn't done this way. Soren looked around; owlet after owlet was slowly waking up.

This new method was dangerous; Soren knew that for a fact. But why would moonblinking be necessary? _Only one way to find out, I gotta find Skench_.

* * *

Gylfie searched frantically for Cobalt, she needed to be sure he was alright. "Going somewhere?" _Digger._She realized. She turned to see the Burrowing owl stare at her with longing eyes. "Gylfie, you can't save him, we have to help Soren, we have to do what's ri-" "Don't you dare tell me about what's right and what's wrong, you think you are Glaux himself? No, you're just a pile of racdrops." she turned away, fuming. Digger watched her go along in sorrow, he never thought that their friendship would end like this, why couldn't she see that he was trying to protect her?

Gylfie tried to avoid the gaze of the guards, the leaders would be awake soon, and she needed to see Cobalt before then. She finally found him talking to a guard, his eyes full of awe, it worried her greatly. "Cobalt!" she called out. He turned around, as soon as he recognized her, he said goodbye and walked towards her.

"Greetings Gylfie, what a wonderful day it is." she looked appalled. "'Wonderful day?' It's wretched; we are creatures of the night Cobalt, not of day!" "Oh Gylfie, you are so naïve, we only have one life on all of existence, we must enjoy all of its beauty." He then took a few steps closer to her. She noticed that the cobalt eyes that he was named after were duller than before. "And right now, I'm looking at the most beautiful thing in all of the world." and with that, he pressed his beak to hers, and she experienced her first kiss.

Whatever feelings of doubt she had was completely erased by the kiss. It was everything she could ever want, she felt loved, it was a wonderful feeling. _Digger..._for whatever reason, his name echoed in her mind. She deepened the kiss, to prove to herself that Digger wasn't important to her anymore, Cobalt was.

She was so wrapped up in the kiss that she didn't see a familiar burrowing owl watch her from a distance. _Give it up chap, you've lost her._His mind painfully told him. With depression crawling into his mind, Digger walked away, ready to spend the remainder of this Glaux-forsaken place in solitude.

* * *

Soren crept along the walls like a spider. It took a lot of convincing to Finny to let him go out on his own. He dare not fly, the guards, while stupid and unobservant, would kill without question. Skench's quarters laid at the top of one of the peaks, a makeshift hollow made of earth and stone. There were no guards in sight, and Skench was nowhere to be seen.

Making his way into the hollow, Soren saw trophies, bones, and various pieces of silver armor. This little collection was of no interest to him, what caught his eye was a map. He could see the Sea of Hoolamire, The Beaks, and even the Great Tree itself. _Oh, what I would give to be back there._

The faint sound of flapping brought him back to reality, Skench was coming. Reacting quickly, he hid himself in the pile of armor, sliding behind each piece until he was completely concealed.

Skench and Spoorn entered the stony hollow, both looked unhappy; of course they never did seem happy.

"We are behind schedule, we need more owlets!"

"You asked us to do the impossible, if the Pure Ones couldn't d-"

"Don't you DARE compare us to the Pure Ones, they're weak, they'll always be weak." Skench sneered.

"The process takes less than two days, we should be ready within a few months." Spoorn pleaded.

"That's not good enough, we need more owlets to-" "YOUR MAJESTY!" a guard screamed. "Two eagles were spotted outside of the compound!" Skench's eyes blazed with fury. "STOP THEM, get some guards out there!" she said as the three owls spread their wings.

Soren was dumbstruck; he was so naïve to think that these owls would be the same as the Pure Ones. _They're not moonblinking them for slavery, they're building an army!_

* * *

Eglantine couldn't stop them from taking Kludd to the guardian's chamber, none of then paid any attention to her, all their attention was focused on the new owl before them.

Boron and Barran looked at the new owl with great curiosity. Strangely, Noctus and Marilla wouldn't let the owl out of their sight, and the arrival seemed to relish in it.

"What is your name, newcomer?" he asked.

"Kludd of Tyto forest." he answered.

"Well, Kludd, what business do you have coming to our humble home?"

Kludd gave a sinister chuckle. "The business of revenge of course, you meddlesome Guardians have thwarted our plans for ages, but tonight it all ends!"

"Kludd, what are you talking about?" his father asked. Kludd paid no attention. "Consider this a reward for vanquishing our great leader, YOU PIECE OF SPRONK!" With that, talons extended, Kludd kept into the air, aiming at the king.

Before talon could meet flesh, he was knocked to the side by none other than his 'father'.

"What in Glaux's name are you doing?!"

"Something that should've been done a long time ago!"

"This isn't you Kludd!"

Kludd sneered through blood red eyes. "Wrong!"

The guardians took their battle stance, ready to vanquish the lone Pure One. Noctus turned to them and pleaded. "Please, let me speak to him, he may not be in the right mind, but he's still my son!"

"Wrong again."

Before Noctus could react, Kludd knocked him to the ground. Bright, yellow eyes gazed into his very being as he ripped his talons through Noctus's throat. With one swipe, he tore his father's bottom jaw from his head, as blood drenched the floor around them. Kludd brought the point of the beak to his father's neck, where the head joined the spine, and smashed it inside. Noctus could only gurgle in horror as he twitched on the ground and lay still. Dead.

Kludd immediately turned around and flew away as the guardians flew after him, leaving Marilla to scream into the creeping darkness.

"AFTER HIM!" Strix Struma commanded, as owls from all over the tree flew to catch him. Watching the scene unfold was Nyra and a large group of Pure Ones.

While Kludd was being looked after, they had slipped in unnoticed, and now, the tree that held their greatest enemy, was undefended, all thanks to Kludd.

Signaling her warriors, they flew upwards, in front of the large crowd of owls that had gathered to witness Kludd. She looked at their horrified expressions and chuckled with malice.

"Kill them all."

**A.N: I hope you enjoyed my semi-backstory of Cobalt. I had a real blast writing this chapter, I hope to have Ch.11 out by Monday, BUT NO PROMISES! Please review! See y'all later!**


	12. The Requiem

**I feel like I should really take some time to wait for updates. But I felt in the mood to write last night, so here it is: Ch. 11. Thank you all for your amazing reviews, and a HUGE congrats to Shen's General for having the most reviewed story in the archive. Well done. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians, but I do own Cobalt.**

**Chapter 11  
**

As he bolted through the caverns, Soren learned a valuable lesson: Owls can't run. Nevertheless, he ran with all his might, with the truth grounded in his mind.

Skench and Spoorn were brainwashing the owlets, not for slavery like the Pure Ones, but for war. Mindless soldiers that held no will of their own, trained to kill without reason, nor remorse. They needed to warn the Guardians.

The crowd of owlets was so massive that Soren had no trouble slipping past the guards unnoticed. Digger was the first owl he recognized, he nearly smashed into him with full force.

"What's wrong Soren?"

"They'... Owlets... Soldiers... Eagles..."

Digger looked confused. "What?"

"I'll explain later, but we have to leave tonight." Soren looked around, his best friend was absent. "Where's Gylfie?" Diggers eyes darkened. "Why don't you ask her obvious _husband_, Cobalt." he spat.

"Who in Glaux's name is Cobalt?"

"Another elf owl, I tried to tell her that this wasn't the time for a relationship. But now she's treating me like I'm some sort of Hagsfiend!"

"'Hagsfiend', what's that?" Soren asked curiously.

"It's a race of demons, half owl, half crow, its nonsense."

Soren's gizzard suddenly felt colder than ever before. It sounded exactly like the strange creatures from his nightmares. He remembered her chilling words: '[Sooner or later, all creatures return to their roots, all it takes is a little rage]' he shuddered at the words.

He could feel her chanting his name. _Soren, Soren_, "Soren, SOREN!"

He nearly fell over at Diggers loud voice. Looking frustrated, he pointed his wing toward the crowd. "Gylfie is right there if you wanna talk."

Soren began to walk in his general direction, but turned to Digger before he was out of earshot. "Are you coming?"

"I think it's best to space myself from her right now."

"Suit yourself." And with that, he left, not noticing Finny fly away towards Skench's hollow.

* * *

Skench returned to her hollow to find a certain Snowy owl looking through all her possessions. As she examined a knife, admiring the blade, Skench spoke up, rather loudly.

"Tempered steel, it has a finer edge."

Finny chuckled to herself. "Well I don't suppose you would have any trouble using it on me, would you?"

"What do you want Finny?"

She turned to look Skench in the eyes; a piercing gaze accompanied by yellow eyes would drive any owlet running to cover. But Finny was no owlet, and she would not be intimated by the Great Horned.

"I believe we have spies in our ranks."

Skench looked unfazed. "One of our troops?"

"No, some of the owlets seem unchanged, they don't respond to their number, and they keep whispering stories of the Guardians."

Before she could even catch her breath, Skench lunged at her, pinning Finny to the ground, and easing her talons across her feathers. "The Guardians?" she hissed. "Yes, yes, it was them."

Skench released her, and looked towards the hollows opening. "SPOORN!" She screeched.

Her loyal enforcer landed in the hollow after mere seconds of silence. "What is it?"

"How many owlets pass by us every day?"

"Dunno, maybe two or three-"

"TOO MUCH! GET OUT THERE AND DOUBLE THE GUARDS! If one owlet escapes then so help me, I'LL BLEED YOU UNTIL THERE IS A RIVER OF BLOOD!"

Spoorn's face darkened with fear. "Right away!" was all that was said before he left the hollow.

She then turned to Finny. "Get a small supply of flecks, and have them put it in the food, It's time to speed up the process."

Finny smiled with glee. "Right away."

* * *

"What do you mean there building an army?"

"Exactly that, it's an enhanced method of moonblinking, it could happen to anyone."

Gylfie had taken Soren's newfound discovery with disgust. It wasn't surprising when she vomited all over the floor.

Suddenly her eyes grew wide with fear. "Cobalt!" she exclaimed.

"What?"

"We need to get Cobalt out of here, I think he's losing his mind here, we have to help him!"

"Gylfie, we ca-"

"I can't leave him to become a murderer! Please, we have to take him with us!" her eyes filled up with tears. He wanted to tell her yes, but it just wasn't possible to get six owls out alive.

"I'm sorry, it just can't be done. The best hope for him now is to pray that the Guardians can save him before it's too late." At this, her eyes turned to disbelief. "Digger's gotten to you hasn't he?"

"It doesn't matter, just meet us at the old pelletorium tonight, we'll escape from there."

"Fine." she grunted.

As Soren walked away, Cobalt cane up behind her and wrapped his wings across her body. "What's going on?" he asked. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Meet me at the pellitorium tonight."

* * *

As the owlets chanted their 'names', Soren quietly wallowed his way through the sleeping owlets. The moon was bright, the stars were twinkling, it was beautiful. Of course he could not focus on that, he was starving, but he dared not eat their food, he only ate the food HE caught, not some crap that had probably been rotten for weeks.

An owl bumped into him. Before he could react, the owl asked: "Is Gylfie with you?"

"She'll meet us there Digger, don't worry."

The burrowing owl nodded his head in agreement. He was hungry as well, but the food smelled _funny_to him, very strange. But his hunger was outweighed by the fact that they were going to leave this place, and return home at last.

Gylfie led Cobalt across the outer walls of the pellitorium, Soren and Digger would be here at any moment, and she wasn't leaving Cobalt behind. "I think that meat was bad, I don't feel so well." he stated. "You'll be fine, this will all be over soon enough."

"What is HE doing here?" a familiar voice hissed.

_Digger._

"Gylfie, I told you it was a bad idea!"

"Tough luck. He's coming with us, and there's not a single, fucking thing you can do to change my mind!"

"Let's talk about this in private." Soren whispered.

"No." Digger said before turning to Gylfie. "He can't come. He'll jeopardize the mission, I won't let these owlets suffer just so you can have little boyfriend."

"I don't give a fuck about what care about!"

"Gylfie," Soren interjected. "Look at yourself, this isn't you. What happened to the kind, gentle owl that I sheltered from the cold, to my best friend?"

Her eyes began to well up in tears. She did remember. She had let this crush change who she was, she had-

"AAAHHHH!"

Cobalt's piercing shriek ran out across the Pellitorium as he collapsed in pain and agony.

"Cobalt!" Gylfie screamed. It was all she could do.

* * *

Cobalt wanted to get out of here, but for Gylfies sake he stayed rooted to the spot as she argued with her friends.

"Well, it seems as though you're bored." A voice resonated

"What do you want father?"

Out of the darkness came his father, covered in fresh blood, and flesh in his beak. His dark, red gaze piercing Cobalt's soul. "Do you really think you can escape me? I am a part of you, just as you are to me."

"I'm nothing like you!" Cobalt yelled.

"Your more like me than you will ever know, it's about to be proven tonight!"

Without warning, his father leapt from the floor, and into Cobalt. Every nerve in his body suddenly exploded in pain, the nightmares of the previous night came back in full force, and even more memory was ripped from his mind. Friends, family, even his own name was ripped from memory. _14-3...14-3_

All he could do was scream, it was the only sound he knew. He was aware of other owls around him, calling him 'Cobalt'. But his name was 14-3, not Cobalt. They didn't know his name. That meant only one thing, they were enemies, and enemies needed to be killed.

**A.N: Get ready for the next 2 chapter, I think they'll be my favorite to write. **


	13. Escape

**I'm back. I unfortunately had a bad case of Writer's Block. But all that was taken care of by publishing my first one-shot: Grief on the RvB archive. If you watch Red vs. Blue, I hope you check it out. BIG thanks to Shen's General for his continued support, and you too CrazyBird101, don't think I've forgotten about you. ;-P**. **Without further ado, let's get started.** **Disclaimer: Other than Cobalt, I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**  
**  
**

**Chapter 12**

Otulissa kept close guard on the entrance of the hollow. This night was making her uneasy; too many guards were patrolling the cliffs. They were too close for comfort.

_Did something happen? Has one of them been injured, had Soren been injured? Is he dead?! Oh Glaux, it can't be.. No, he's alive. He has to be._Her mind was like that these days, always assuming the worst. The thought of Soren leaving her was unimaginable. But in her mind she knew it was true.

One day, Soren would leave her, and everything else behind to join whatever riches were held in Glamoria. In nature there was only one absolute, everything at some point dies. _She_would die. And now, looking across the desolate peaks of St. Aggies, she could almost feel its coming presence.

A piercing shriek echoed across the cavern, it was powerful, female, and _angry._"What was that?" came Twilight's voice. "I'm not sure." she answered back.

In an instant, three owls came into view, flapping wildly. There, leading them was Soren. "They're back!" Ottulisa exclaimed. "Perfect timing!" Twilight responded. _He's alright, we can finally go home._She thought happily to herself.

However, her happiness soon turned to despair. Digger was bloodied, dusty, and weeping silently to himself. Gylfie looked unharmed, but her eyes showed differently. She looked upon Digger with sad eyes, yet caring and affectionate.

And Soren, her dear Soren. The one she had given all of her love to, the one she would die for, had a large gash on his side. As he collapsed onto her, she could only stare at the large pool of blood gathering before her, and scream.

* * *

**20 minutes** **earlier**

"Gylfie get back here!" Soren yelled.

Cobalt's scream echoed through the pellitorium, sending guards flapping wildly to the source. "We've got guards inbound!" Digger yelled.

"Thanks for the update!" Soren yelled back.

He turned his attention to Gylfie, who was still trying to calm Cobalt down. Soren saw Cobalt open his eyes, but they were no longer had the blue tinge; instead they were purely silver, blank, emotionless.

"It's OK, we're going to get out of here, you'll be safe." she said soothingly.

Cobalt began to chuckle sinisterly. "But I don't want to leave, and neither will you."

Without warning, Cobalt lunged at her; talons extended, and eyes blazing with silver fire. She dodged him with ease while Soren took his battle stance.

"Don't do this, you can fight it!" Soren yelled.

Cobalt responded by lunging at him, his talons grazing his left flank. The small owl laughed like a maniac before he dug his blades into Soren's leg.

Before any more damage could be done, Cobalt was knocked from Soren's leg, and pummeled into the ground by Digger. Soren could barely stand, his leg was bleeding heavily, and every amount of pressure sent jolts of pain across his body. He slumped to the ground, his body burning with agony.

"We need to leave, NOW!"

Gylfie stood on the ground, dumbstruck to what she just witnessed. "Gylfie, unless you want to die, you'll follow us!" she heard Digger yell. She turned to him, but before a word was said, she was knocked to the ground.

A taloned foot grabbed her by her neck and squeezed with ferocity. "I can't wait to hear the sound of your neck snap; it's going to be beautiful." She couldn't breath, the attacker was chocking her. She turned to her attacker. She was looking into the eyes of Cobalt. A very angry Cobalt.

He was gone, whatever feelings she felt for the elf owl were washed away, he was a soldier now, he was nonexistent. _After the way I treated Digger, I guess I deserve to die_.

"GYLFIE!" Before Cobalt could even blink, Digger smashed his body onto Cobalt's leg. A loud crack echoed across the room, followed by a scream.

Gylfie, gasping for air, saw Digger looming over Cobalt. His head in Digger's talons. "When I get through with you, Gylfie will experience the most unpleasant-" Digger applied pressure to his skull, causing Cobalt to cry out in pain. "You will NEVER hurt her again, as long as I'm alive, she'll be safe."

"Why do you protect that whore?"

"Because I love her."

With strength he never knew before, Digger smashed Cobalt's head into the ground. A sickening crunch was heard as Digger continued to meld Cobalt's head with the stone floor, letting all of his rage and anger surge through his body. Soon, Cobalt, or what was left of him, was no more than a bloody heap.

"She gave her heart for you, and you do this? FUCK YOU, FUCK YOU!" he screamed. He felt a pair of wings encircle him, and a soothing voice whispered to him. "It's ok, calm down, I'm here." He turned to her and returned the embrace. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry Gylfie."

A piercing shriek broke the pair from their recovery, guards were pouring out of hollows across the pelitorium. Gylfie looked around in terror at the sight. One of the guards turned around and screeched: "SOLDIERS, ATTACK!" On que, thousands of owlets came rushing in, battle claws ready to meet warm flesh.

Soren barely had time to look back and see Skench, eyes yellow with fury, fly at him. Three piercing daggers dug into his flesh, and ripped down his flank. Blood gushed onto the already stained ground and his screams pierced the night sky.

"See you in Hagsmire, _Guardian._" she sneered. She brought her talons to his throat, and Soren waited for the end. _Goodbye Otulissa, I love you._

"Soren, look out!" he heard Gylfie yell. A scream filled the air, not one of fear, but of determination. Without warning, a massive creature smashed into Skench, with eyes like the golden sun, and talons with a diamonds edge. Dark brown feathers coated a heavily muscled body, and long, pale scars dotted along its massive head.

"Remember me?" the creature challenged.

An Eagle. And one that Skench seemed to know.

"You." was all she said. She turned to her makeshift army and screeched. The guards and soldiers all came forward in a huge wave, but was stopped as three more eagles entered the scene.

"Get out of here!" the eagle yelled. "We'll hold them off!"

Soren could barely stand let alone fly, he was losing blood, fast. "Come on, you can make it, come on Soren!" Digger encouraged.

By the time Soren got into a steady flight rhythm, he began to feel the effects of the blood loss. His vision had begun to blur, the sounds of battle didn't reach his ears, and his wound didn't even hurt anymore.

The last thing he could recall was the sound of a scream, and the faintest outline of an angel-like face, crying over him.

* * *

Soren was still unconscious by the time the eagles returned. The leader's name was Streak, a war veteran who seemed to have a few run-ins with the St. Aggies owls. His mate was a mute named Zan, who seemed to express herself more than her mate. The other two eagles guarded the hollow as Zan tended to Soren's wounds.

"How is he?" Ottulisa inquired. Zan made a few gestures to her husband, who responded with sorrow. "His wounds have become infected, combined with the blood loss, he's in God's hands now."

"God?"

"We call him God, but I believe you call him Glaux, it's all the same. Either way, I don't think he'll make it through the night."

Ottulisa embraced her lover and wept into his soft pelt. "Please come back to me, I love you, I can't leave without you." she whispered to him.

Gylfie looked across the hollow's opening to see Digger, she couldn't help but remember that pang of guilt she felt whenever she remembered her cruel treatment.

Yet, he had said he _loved_ her. _Did I hear him right? _She needed to be sure.

She found him watching the steady sunrise. It was beautiful, the way the blue sky erupted into golden hues.

"Thank you." she whispered.

"For what?" he responded, looking back at her.

"Saving my life, making me realize what I had done, and for putting up with me."

"I'll always be here for you Gylfie, always."

"Good." she said. To his utter surprise, she leaned forward and locked beaks with him. It was not like Cobalt's kiss, this kiss felt _right_, like she was being loved back.

When they disconnected, she embraced him. "Because I don't think I can live without you."

And with that, the sun rose high in the sky, ready to face the challenges of the new day.

**A.N: Story is going to end soon, I CAN'T WAIT to show you my ideas for Book 2. Fun fact: I was actually going to have Digger and Gylfie's relationship go from bad to WORSE, all the way into the end of Book 2, but then I thought, nah, it'll work out fine. Please review.**

**Question: What do you guys think is going to happen in the next chapter?  
**


	14. The Catalyst

**My Gluax, nearly a MONTH with no updates?! D: I shun myself. So sorry for the absence, but I do have a reason. I've always written my stories using my iPod Touch, to write on the go. But recently, it's gone missing. So I've had to start using Microsoft Word to write, which is more time consuming. But I promised that I would finish this story, and I intend to keep it. Don't worry, In the time since my last update, my good friend 'Shen's General' has been cranking up his story 'Between Brothers' to the max. It's the best story in this archive, and I really hope you enjoy reading his story more than mine. Also, I've come into the possession of 'The Art of Legend of the Guardians." It's an incredible book and if your willing to PM me, I've got some juicy new story details. I've kept you waiting long enough, ONWARD WE GO! Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.**

**Chapter 13  
**

Ottulisa watched as Soren's chest slowly rose and fell. Streak came and padded his wounds with moss, and a strange clear fluid began to ooze out.

"Will he be ok?" she asked worriedly.

"I've done all I can. He's in Glaux's hands now." He said before leaving the hollow.

She looked over to the edge of the hollow to see Gylfie and Digger, asleep in each others wings. She felt a pain rise in her chest, she would give anything to do the same thing with Soren, but fate had now threatened to take him away from her. Forever.

She laid down next to him, and kissed his seemingly lifeless beak. "Please come back to me, I can't live without you." She felt tears welling up in her eyes as fell into slumber. "I love you."

* * *

The air was filled with ash and dust, the stench of death thick in Soren's nostrils, and the sound of endless screams echoing around him like his own private chorus. The blood-red sky glowed with lightning, as a continuous thunder rolled off jagged peaks.

_Oh Glaux, not this place again._

Yet here he was, a desolate wasteland where death was enlightenment, and life was sin. A place where light was a myth in itself, and darkness rules supreme.

A place called Hagsmire.

"I must admit, I didn't think I would see you again so soon." Soren felt his gizzard turn as cold as stone. "Of course, we all end up here one day."

Soren looked up to see a menacing figure, with ruffled grey feathers, a body lined with scars, and penetrating yellow eyes.

"What are you?" he asked.

"My kind's name has been lost in legend, but to all of you, we like to be called Hagsfiends." said the female.

_Hagsfiend? What in Glaux's name is a Hagsfiend?_

"Look around you Soren, look at what is taking place around you."

At first he saw nothing, but then, coming out of the ground were dozens of bodies, both Pure One and Guardian alike. He saw his parents, he saw Ezylryb, he saw Eglantine, everyone he cared about was slowly rotting around him.

"Look at what has become of your family. You have wasted your time chasing false villains, the true terror is on it's way to your home as we speak, ready to fulfill it's ancient calling."

The fear that had once plagued Soren's heart had all but vanished, replaced by an immense surge of hatred. Without warning, Soren leapt at the demonic entity and sank his talons into its flank. The hagsfiend screamed in pain as the bodies dissolved into dust. "Get off of me!" the creature screamed, but Soren relentlessly held on, digging his talons even deeper into flesh.

Suddenly, the world around them exploded in a massive array of light. All the hatred that had been inside of him suddenly ebbed away. In fact he felt... happy, like he had been reborn.

"Don't do this Soren." said an angel-like voice.

He turned towards the sound of the voice to see- _ What is she doing here?_

Surrounded by light was Otulissa, more radiant than she had ever been before. Her hazel eyes sparkled with love and affection, her wings were perfectly groomed, and the smile she cast towards him filled his heart with pure joy.

"I am not the one you see, I can take many forms, so I have chosen her."

"What are you?"

"I am an angel, from the place you call Glamoria."

Soren was speechless, he had always believed in the existence of such beings, but to see one before him now just filled him with awe.

_First a Hagsfiend, and now an Angel. Maybe I am going mad._ He thought to himself.

"Why are you here?"

"To stop you from destroying your destiny."

With lightning speed, the angel shoved her talons into Soren's chest, but strangely, he felt no pain. She pulled back, clutching something. Soren gasped, for inside her talons was an cloud-like orb, with wisps of fire and smoke emerging from a blood-red core.

"What is this?" Soren asked in awe.

"Your darkness. Every being that has ever lived has one of these. Your friends have one, your future mate has one, _you _have one." she said, holding up the orb. "There are those who have embraced the darkness, they are the ones who are called Hagsfiends."

"Why are you telling me this?" Soren asked.

"You almost gave into the darkness, and once you give in, there is no going back. You have a destiny Soren, and you almost destroyed it. You can't give into hate, you can't follow your brother."

At this, Soren's eyes went wide. "My brother? But-"

"Soren, you know as well as I do that your brother is alive."

_I was right; I was so caught up in St. Aggies that I've forgotten about him._

"He is on his way to your home, the great tree, as we speak."

Soren felt his gizzard turn numb. _No. NO! IT CAN'T BE!_

As his thoughts grew worried, the ball of darkness began to emit a strange sound. Soren immediately felt pain consume his body, the sound seemed to tear at his insides and numb his mind. It was as if a child was crying for its mother, it was an eerie screech of a prisoner watching it's life end before an executioner. It was the sound of death itself. All consuming and ever present

It only took a moment for him to realize that the scream was coming from Soren's own beak as well. As he screamed from the pain, the angel simply looked at the ball of darkness and whispered something to it. The orb's red core suddenly filled up with light as the cloud of smoke surrounding the orb began to dissipate. After a few seconds the orb had completely dissolved into light. As the orb dissolved, Soren felt the pain slowly ebb away. Only when he saw the empty talons of the angel did he make the connection.

"The darkness isn't gone, it still remains inside of you." she said, pointing towards his chest. Soren felt his heart sink, was he destined to hold this darkness inside himself forever? Without warning, the angel embraced him, calming his mind.

"You face a journey with much heartbreak, and such sorrow, but Glaux has laid his holy eyes upon you. I wish you good luck, and Glauxspeed."

The world around them began to dissolve, the seemingly endless white had begun to take form, transforming into a hollow. Opening his eyes, he saw his friends, a black sky, and a long scar across his chest.

He was back.

* * *

Otulissa felt a wing prod her shoulder. "Let me sleep." she groaned.

"Really, I thought you'd want to see me again."

She opened her eyes immediately and gasped. Soren was standing before her, alive, and completely unharmed. His wound had been replaced with a long scar that seemed to meld with his feathers, while his eyes seemed to shine with a bright light. He looked radiant, and in her opinion, very, _very _handsome.

Without saying a word, she locked beaks with him, letting her tongue explore the inside of his beak. She pushed against him, making him land on his back. It stung, but considering what else was happening, he didn't mind.

"Well then, should we give you two some privacy?" called a booming voice.

Soren looked up to see the eagle, the one who saved his friends.

"I can't thank you enough for what you did for us." Soren said as Otulissa got off of him.

"We're always looking forward to fighting those racdrops, my name's Streak by the way. My mate Zan is looking for some food."

Before he could reply, the bodies of Digger and Gylfie slammed into his side.

"Ouch."

"We never gave up hope; we knew you would come back!" Digger exclaimed.

"Well slap me thrice and hand me to me mamma, you're awake!"

The new voice came from none other than Twilight, dropping a handful of mice before joining the embrace.

"Guys…. Can't…..breathe." he whispered.

"Sorry." They all exclaimed at once.

"What a bond you all have." Streak exclaimed.

Soren was finally back, but the angel's warning still burned in the back of his mind. He needed to get back to the tree, fast.

"Guys, we have to go home." He weakly exclaimed.

"I couldn't agree more! They'll have a parade in our honor; ah I can already smell the roasted rat." He exclaimed with a sigh.

"Ooooo. Roasted rat." They all exclaimed in unison.

"Guys, we need to leave NOW!" Soren yelled.

"Why, what's the rush?" Streak inquired.

"I think the great tree is going to be attacked."

"What? By the St. Aggies owls? We just beat them!" Gylfie stated.

"No, it's worse. We need to leave right now." He then turned to Streak. "Do you know the quickest way to the sea of Hoolemire?"

Streak turned to one of his lieutenants. "Seran, do you know a way?"

The muscular eagle chuckled to himself before answering in a thick accent: "Da, I know a place."

* * *

"RUN!" Dewlap yelled, moving owlets to the shelters. Pure Ones were everywhere, killing anything in their path, and no Guardians were around to protect them.

"DEWLAP, GET THEM TO THE STORE ROOMS, QUICKLY!" Yelled Speo, an old burrowing owl. "I'LL HOLD THEM OFF!" he yelled, getting into a battle stance.

"Will you now?" a malevolent voice said behind him.

He turned to see a barn owl, female and covered with cream white feathers, and eyes that pierced into his soul.

One of the owlets screamed at him. "SPEO RUN! IT'S NYRA!"

Before he could even blink, her talons sliced into his throat, and twisted. When she removed them, Speo was convulsing on the ground, with the steady hiss of his windpipe fresh in her ears.

She turned to the owlet, covered in down and wearing hazel eyes. She remembered this owlet, all too well.

"Eglantine, it's so nice to see you again. Tell me, where is your brother?"

"DON'T TOUCH HER!" An owlet by the name of Pete exclaimed, jumping at her. With one swoop, she caught the helpless owlet in her talons and squeezed. The sound of his neck snapping sent chill running down Eglantine's spine, and a muffled cry escaped her beak.

Nyra tossed the corpse into the water below and grabbed her.

"Where is your brother? I would like to repay him for the trouble he's caused me and my late husband."

Eglantine responded by spitting in her face. Nyra's eyes turned into a dark shade of red, and she eased closer to the defenseless owlet.

"You've just made a _serious _mistake." She sneered.

"Not as serious as yours I'm afraid." A voice spoke behind her.

Without warning, a huge force slammed into her side, causing her to drop Eglantine and sprawl on the ground. She looked at her attacker and spoke in a voice of pure hatred.

"You."

Standing in front of Eglantine was an owl that filled her with pure hatred and pain. An owl that had ended the life she once had with her husband. The owl whose life she would take away before Kludd ever got the chance.

The owl standing before her was Soren.

**A.N: Dun Dun Duuuuuuunnnnnnnnnn. I hope you enjoy my little cliffhangers. Remember that authors note saying that the stuff at the Great Tree wasn't taking place at the same time as St. Aggies, well here ya go. Final battle of Book 1 is next, I will get this one to you ASAP. Please review, adios.**

**Question: What do you WANT to see in the final battle of Book 1?  
**


	15. Between Brothers

**Hello my good friends, I am back for what could be my favorite chapter of Book 1. The 2nd to last chapter of 'Skies of Darkness" is finally here. I've spent a long time making sure this chapter was up to par with good action sequences, that and making a cover page that I personally believe is awesome. (Wither I succeeded or failed is up to you.) This chapter is dedicated to Shen's General, who has helped me greatly with this story. I said it before and I'll say it again, 'Between Brothers' is the best Fanfiction on the archive, and I have absolutely NO idea why you are reading this instead of that. Nevertheless, we are here, and I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Disclaimer: I own Legend of the Guardi... What? Oh, I was just dreaming.**

**Chapter 14**

"He's getting away, stop him!"

Kludd paid no attention to the group of Guardians chasing after him, he didn't care. He was finally being redeemed for what had happened. In a few hours, the 'noble' Guardians would turn home to find it in the rightful hands of the Pure Ones, with everyone dead. His thoughts trailed off to his brother. How glorious it would be to see him find all of his heroes dead right before his life ended. As soon as the thought ended, an immense pain spread through his mind, he could barely fly, all that he could think about was his brother.

_Soren...Here...Can't...Nyra...He's at the tree...He's alive, HE'S ALIVE! _His scattered thoughts whispered to him.

As if being possessed, Kludd turned around, passing the Guardians with immense speed and precision. "He's headed towards the tree, after him!" Ezylryb commanded.

Kludd flew like a demon towards the tree's direction. His brother was there, he could feel it. _It's time to end this, brother._

* * *

The air around them seemed to freeze into silence, as if death itself had stopped to watch. Nyra looked upon her foe with surprise, anger, and pure hatred. This was her husband's murderer, the reason the Guardians were still alive. He was, without a doubt, the bane of her existence.

"Eglantine, run." Soren ordered.

"Ah, trying to make her run from the inevitable?" Nyra sneered.

"Eglantine, run, NOW!" Soren yelled.

'Uglamore, AFTER HER!" Nyra commanded.

Behind her, a massive barn owl covered in scars flew at his sister, talons extended. Before he could get to her, a piercing battle cry rang in his ears. A large Great Grey landed on the ground, carrying a large, blunt object. A lute. With the speed of a panther, he smashed the lute against his skull, sending him across the floor and knocking him out instantly.

"Nice hit, that's about the only good quality that thing has." Digger cried before landing next to him.

"How dare you! I seem to recall when you loved this lute." Twilight retorted.

"You liked the lute?" Gylfie exclaimed, landing beside him.

"When I was barely just an owlet, that doesn't count."

"ENOUGH!" Nyra screeched. "Now you die!"

In an instant, she flew at Soren with lightning speed, barreling into him and sending them both over the tree's edge. Immense pain shot across Soren's body as Nyra sunk her talons deep into his flank. He quickly returned the favor by digging his beak into her flesh. With a screech of pain, she locked talons with him and threw him into the edge of the parliament. She was on top of him within seconds, holding a blade-like talon to his throat.

"This is for my husband." she sneered before raising her talon, ready to deliver the killing blow. Soren began to panic, he didn't want to die now.

_This can't be it, The angel said I had a destiny, It can't end like this!_

As she prepared to take his life, a wild screech caught her attention. They both turned in shock to see a barn owl flying wildly towards them.

"NO, HE'S MINE!" the owl shrieked. Soren recognized that voice, no matter how long ago he heard it, it still sent a chill down his spine.

"Kludd." Soren gasped in horror. Nyra looked at Kludd in shock, this was not a part of the plan.

_If he's here, then that means that the Guardians are... oh no. _He had brought the Guardians right to them!

As if on que, dozens of Guardians sprang out behind him, talons ready, and blades sharp. Kludd paid no attention, he was completely focused on Soren.

"Kludd, you fool! What are you doing?" Nyra questioned.

"Something that should have been done long ago."

Like a bullet, he rammed into his brother with such force that they both tumbled over the edge of the island. Soren barely had time to regain his balance, the sounds of a new battle above them echoed in his ears, and Kludd looked upon Soren with eyes of blazing fire.

"You have no idea of how long I've waited for this, brother." he sneered.

"Why do you do this? They cast you out and you crawl back to them? They're not your family Kludd, they're nothing but monsters." At this, Kludd merely snorted.

'We are your real family, not them. Our sister, our parents-"

"Wrong, they are _your _parents. My true father was slain by an idiot barn owl, who isn't worthy of the name 'Tyto Alba'. You killed Metalbeak, you turned Nyra insane, and you broke my wing and burnt my face!" he screeched.

"It wasn't my fault, you tried to kill m-"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP! Now, since you killed _my _father, I've decided to return the favor."

Soren felt a surge of dread overtake him. "What do you mean?"

"I'd say it would be rather difficult to recognize that bloody corpse on the floor, but I think you'll recognize him just fine."

"Kludd, you... couldn't have.." Soren could barely speak as tears threatened to burst from his eyes. His father, the one who had inspired him, the one who had told of the legendary Guardians had been slain by his own son.

"The way I see it, your just as clueless as he was. Do you really believe that all of this can last? The time of the Guardians is over, it's time for a new order to bring glory to the owl kingdoms."

"I can't let that happen Kludd. I refuse to be a part of your new order." Soren retorted through blurry eyes. He reluctantly spread his talons in a fighting stance.

Kludd began to chuckle to himself, and eyed Soren with glee. "Who ever said that I was going to let you be a part of it?" he asked.

'I don't want to do this Kludd"

You're right, but I do!" he sneered. Without any words, the two brothers collided with each other.

* * *

Ezylryb looked upon his home in horror. Dead bodies covered the Great Hall. Fellow Guardians, owlets, innocent citizens, all lying in a pool of blood.

_I've failed. I promised to keep these owls safe, and I've failed them. _He then looked at his fellow Guardians, fighting the menace that had caused this tragedy. _Well, I can guarantee this, no more shall die tonight!_

"Guardians, uphold our oath!" Boron yelled. "ATTACK!"

Ezylryb flew down in a spiral formation, and raked his talons across any Pure One he could reach. Looking across from him, he saw Strix Struma battling a muscular Pure One soldier. As the pair fought, the soldier was joined by another squadron of troopers. All that could be seen was a whirlwind of feathers and blood. By the time he got to her, the soldiers were gone and she had already fallen into the sea below.

Before he could even shed a tear for his fallen comrade, One of the soldiers flew at him with amazing speed, and grabbed his wing in its talons.

"The legendary Lyze of Kiel. For someone of your stature I would've assumed you would be harder to kill." The soldier sneered.

Using all the strength he could muster, he shoved his talon into the soldier's mask, dislodging it. The soldier released him immediately, giving Ezylryb an opportunity to grab onto his wing.

Using the wind as a propeller, he shot across the battle zone like a bullet, and smashed the soldier's wing into the stone. A jolting crack was followed by the sound of the soldier's muffled cry of pain. Ezylryb threw the soldier away from him with immense strength. With a shattered wing, the soldier could only scream as he crashed into the water below.

"You've got a lot to learn!"

Kludd's talons raked across Soren's side, leaving him gasping in pain. Both had landed hard blows at one another, but neither looked ready to give up.

"Give up Kludd, you can't win!"

'Keep telling yourself that, deny the truth!" he retorted.

Soren felt some strength leave him, he was tired and losing blood. He could feel his heart quicken as fear began to overtake him.

Taking advantage of Soren's weakness of breath, Kludd barrelled into Soren, sending the two brothers crashing into the Dining pair's combined weight shattered the roots making up the wall as they landed on the trays of food. Berries and nuts were scattered across the floor, which was quickly coated by a thin layer of blood.

Soren felt an incrediable pain on his left side. But as he tried to get up, the pain became so great that he couldn't move. He barely had enough strength to turn his head and look at the cause. Imbedded in his side was a broken tree branch, glistining with fresh blood, and sending waves of pain across his body.

The silence was broken by his brother's laughter. Kludd stood at the end of the hall, covered in dust and debris. He slowly walked up to his brother, and looked at the large piece of wood potruding from his side. Tenderly, he grabbed the bark, causing Soren to quicken his breaths. With a smile on his face, he twisted the bark, causing more blood to spill as Soren screamed in pain.

'It's as if Glaux himself has given you to me as a gift."

"Don't... do this Kludd." Soren panted.

"Ah, but why not. I'm being merciful, I'm ending your pain for good."

"Brother, please."

"Goodbye Soren."

"NOOO!" a screeching voice yelled behind them. In an instant, Kludd was knocked to the side by a very, _very _angry owl.

"Who in Glaux's name are you?" he asked.

"Otulissa? What are you doing here? Run!" Soren pleaded.

"I'm not looking forward to seeing anyone else I love die." she answered.

"'Love'? Don't tell me that you chose _him_."

"We chose each other, and now I'm choosing to kill you if you lay a single talon on him."

"Fine I won't, but the same can't be said for you." he sneered

Before Kludd could make a move, Otulissa knocked Kludd to the ground. She raked her talons across his stomach, spilling new blood over the floor. Using his strength, he pushed Otulissa off of him, and went into a battle stance.

"Pure Ones, retreat!" Nyra's voice called out. Kludd looked back, they were retreating, all of the troopers were following Nyra's familiar shape. He had to leave, no matter how confident he was, he couldn't take on all the Guardians by himself. He looked back to his brother. Otulissa was guarding him with cold fire blazing in her eyes.

"This isn't over brother. Enjoy your time with your whore, you don't have much left." he snickered, he then turned and flew after his comrades.

Otulissa dropped her battle stance immediately and turned to her fallen lover. He was bleeding out, and if she removed the bark, the wound could get worse.

"Otulissa, don't risk yourself like that, you would've been killed."Soren whispered.

She responded by pressing her beak to his, relishing his soothing taste and touch. No matter what happened tonight, she had this moment.

"We'll get you some help, just hang on." she said, breaking the kiss.

Everything for Soren began to blur together. He saw his parents whispering to him at the morning sunrise, he saw multiple dark shapes surrounding him, and then he saw the angel giving him strength and courage. As the images began to fade into black, all he could hear was his steady breathing, and a single set of words that managed to make him smile.

"I love you."

**A.N: Only 1 more chapter to go, and I am done... with Book 1. I can't thank you guy's enough for all the support you have given me. I would have never thought that I would get as much praise for this as I have, and quite frankly, I don't deserve it. I can honestly say I am very excited to begin work on "The Blazing Inferno", but one must finish one before beginning another.**

**Question: What do you think will happen in the final chapter?**


	16. The Gathering Darkness

**We are finally here my friends, the final chapter to 'Skies of Darkness'. I can't express to all of you of how much your support has meant to me and the continuation of this story. When I first started this story, I expected to get at the most: 15 reviews and a favorite or two, but over 60+ reviews?! (Faints.) I would like to personally thank the 2 members who have stuck with me since the story's not-so-humble beginnings: Crazybird101 and Shen's General. I can't thank you 2 enough for all your support in this story. Shen's General: Keep up writing like a true bad-ass, never lose your touch. Crazybird101: You should START writing as well as reviewing, I'd love to see your ideas :). Well, here we are, allow me to present to you: the end of book 1. Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of the Guardians.  
**

**Chapter 15  
**

The room appeared blurry to Soren, and the muffled sound of voices didn't help either. He was tired, he was weary, but he was still alive.

Soren looked down to his left side. The last time he saw that spot, it had been punctured by a massive piece of bark. Now, the only thing that remained was a large wound, stitched up and now able to join his seemingly growing collection of them.

He recognized this room. He was in the nursery, the same room where Eglantine had been kept during her moonblinked state. Ironically, he was in the same spot as she was, but unlike before, he was not alone this time. Wounded owls had filled up every bit of space available in the room. It wasn't just Guardians he saw, he saw wounded owlets there as well, and not all of them were breathing.

In the corner of the hall lay a menacing figure, unconscious, but menacing nonetheless. It was the Pure One that Nyra had sent after Eglantine.

_Uglamore? What's he doing here? _

It didn't matter, no one was there to answer his query, and he wasn't about to find out anything lying about.

He stood up, ignoring the small wave of pain coming from his wound, and walked towards the sound of the voices. He put his ear to the hollow's edge and listened. It was definitely a large group.

"So after these eagles led you in the general direction, they left?" said a gruff, wise old voice.

_Ezylryb. _Soren recognized.

"Yes. They said they needed to 'keep tabs' on Skench and Spoorn." the voice of Twilight responded.

"Well at least they have those two under control, while we deal with the real problem: the Pure Ones." Ezylryb answered.

Boron's voice entered the conversation. "Nyra is their main leadership now, and as the saying goes 'Cut off the head of the snake, and the body dies.' We take care of her, and the Pure Ones shall disband."

"If that were true, then why did it not work for Metalbeak?" Ezylryb asked.

"They still had Nyra as their queen. If we end this now, then there will be no one for them to assume leadership."

"There is always someone to take leadership my king. I am most concerned about that soldier that took the life of Noctus, and tried to take you're own as well."

"And the life of my boyfriend." a familiar voice popped in.

_Otulissa is here too? _

"Wasn't 'Uglamore' his name?" Twilight asked.

"No." Ezylryb answered. "That's the soldier we captured, this owl is someone else."

Almost relying on instinct, Soren pushed against the wall's entrance, lost his footing, and fell on top of another owl.

"While I realize that this is going to happen soon enough, I would prefer _not _to be in the same room with you as it transpires." Ezylryb said amid the gasps of shock.

"You're unconscious for two days and you start off by doing this?" Digger asked.

Soren looked down to see Otulissa, blushing fiercely, and donning a huge smile on her face. After realizing what was happening, Soren donned the same blush.

He was lying on top of her. Again.

He quickly dismounted her, and tried to regain his composure. All of his friends were there, with Mrs. P tending to a sleeping Eglantine in a small bed of moss. The sight of his sleeping sister reminded him of the horrors that he and his friends had witnessed, and of his dead father.

"Kludd. His name is Kludd."

"How do you know him?" Otulissa asked.

"He's my brother." he answered.

The entire room became deathly silent, as each member brooded over what to do next. Soren gestured to the sleeping Pure One. "Why are we keeping him?" he asked.

"Information, he may know of where Nyra has taken the rest of her troops." Boron answered.

"And if he doesn't?"

"Then we have no more use for him."

"Soren," Ezylryb interjected. "We are about to bury our dead. I think there is someone you should pay your respects to."

Soren felt a great lump well up in his throat as sadness began to take hold of him. He felt a wing tenderly brush his back feathers. He turned to see Otulissa look at him with an expression of sadness.

"You don't have to handle this alone." she proclaimed. "I'll go with you."

Soren barely had any strength to refuse her, and to be honest, he didn't want to. He simply nodded his head and turned to follow Ezylryb, with Otulissa close behind.

* * *

Gylfie watched as her best friend flew away, trying to keep her composure strong. The experience had not been easy for her either; her short 'relationship' with Cobalt had taken its tool on her spirit. She had acted horribly towards her friends for a simple crush, not even true love, only infatuation. She was fine without love, she didn't need it, nor did she want it. But she knew someone who did. She turned towards Digger, who was still looking at his friends shrinking form, and felt a familiar warmth spread across her body.

Were it not for Digger, she would've been dead by Cobalt's talons. She was already surprised that he saved her, but it was completely beyond her why he proclaimed his love to her. She didn't deserve the feeling of love, let alone deserve his own. He was smart, funny, and always willing to put his life on the line for his friends, he could easily find someone more worthy of him than she was.

_But he doesn't want someone else you idiot! He wants YOU! _her internal voice argued. She knew it was true, but one question remained, burned into her mind.

_Do I love him back?_

Suddenly she felt a wing caress her shoulder, as Digger wrapped his wings around her for an embrace. Gylfie gladly returned the embrace, wrapping her small wings around his slightly larger figure. Gylfie smiled, because feeling his delicate feathers on her own, she felt she was closer to answering her question.

* * *

Soren couldn't comprehend the ocean of death surrounding him. Wither it was Guardian or Pure One didn't matter, too much blood had been spilt.

"He's over here."

"Where's my mum?" Soren asked.

"I don't know, I haven't seen her since the attack." Ezylryb responded.

He led the pair to a small pile of corpses, but only one stood out to Soren. He carefully caressed his da's feathers, as if expecting to feel his warm touch as he sprang back to life, but all he felt was nothing. His da was cold, lifeless. Dead.

"I'll give you as much time as you wish." Ezylryb stated. "And I am truly sorry."

Soren didn't even hear his mentor leave; all he could hear was his father's soothing voice, telling him of honor, and culture. Right and wrong. Good and evil.

He remembered the angel's words._ Every being that has ever existed has darkness inside of them, but what matters is wither we choose to give into the darkness, or rise against it._ His father never gave into the darkness, even to his dying breath.

"I'm sorry da. I'm sorry I couldn't save you, I tried, and I failed." Soren felt the tears threaten to burst from his eyes once again, but he tried to remain steady. "I promise, I'll take care of Eglantine, and of ma... and..." He couldn't hold it in any longer. Without words, he embraced Otulissa, and began to cry. She gently kissed the side of his head and tightened the embrace. Whatever the world had left to throw at them, she didn't care. For now, she had this moment, two lovers comforting one another.

Here, against the skies of darkness, the two lovers rode out the storm.

* * *

Kludd easily navigated through the jagged edges of The Beaks. Normally he would have gone around, but right now he was following Nyra, who hadn't spoken a word since leaving the tree. But Kludd didn't care, she should've been proud of him for attempting to kill Soren.

_Why did I falter? I could've ended him right then and there. If it weren't for that worthless bitch, he would be dead by now._

"Here, we shall land here." Nyra commanded.

Kludd followed his fellow soldiers into the dark cavern below, twisting through the small caves with ease.

Kludd landed next to the other soldiers, admiring the huge mountains above them.

"Kludd!" One soldier called.

"What is it Urk?"

"Nyra would like to speak to you."

Kludd followed Urk to Nyra's landing spot, where she stood, deep in thought.

"You wished to see me my que-" In a matter of seconds, she had him pinned down, held by the throat

"Why did you come back, you were meant to lead the Guardians out of there, where we could strike, and instead, you led them back!" she sneered.

"My queen, it was Soren, I needed to-"

"SILENCE!" she shrieked. "You disobeyed a direct order from me, _your queen. _How could you betray me again?!"

"I could never betray you, I LOVE YOU!" he yelled.

Nyra went completely silent, staring at the desperate owl, ignoring the growing crowd around them. Nyra released Kludd's throat and stood before him, eye to eye.

"You love me?" she asked, emotionlessly.

"Yes." he proclaimed.

Without warning, Nyra swung her talons at him, ripping across his face. Three streaks of blood gushed out from his newfound wounds, making him momentarily blind. He bellowed in agony, trying to stop the bleeding with his wings.

Nyra looked at his squirming form as if he was a succulent piece of meat, ready to be devowered.

"Only one owl had the right to love me, and now he's gone. You are _nothing _compared to him." she snarled. "Wither you want to be a part of us is irrelevant to me, but if you are with us, then stay out of my way."

That was the last thing he could hear as he lapsed into unconsciousness.

* * *

Lightning crackled across the blood red sky as ash fell forth like rain. Only two beings stood up to the storm. One bore yellow eyes, feathers filled with ash, and battle claws caked with rusted blood.

While some referred to her as the Hagsfiend queen, she preferred her real name: Dementia.

The creature next to her looked like a monstrous Barn Owl, but lacking any eyes, and bearing a split-apart-face, coated in flesh and gore. The monstrosity snarled in anticipation.

"Patience, my dear, patience." Dementia cooed. "We won't have to wait much longer, the cycle has already begun, I can feel it."

At this, the creature began to emit a series if strange sounds, almost like a sadistic chuckling.

"Indeed, we are indeed close. Soon, my friend, those fools will soon understand the true meaning of suffering."

* * *

As the night edged onward, the Pure One soldiers began to retire for the night.

Everyone was now gone, there was no one to see Kludd's body begin to twitch.

There was no one to see Kludd open his blood-red eyes.

There was no one to see the malicious grin slowly spread across his face.

There was no one to hear his sadistic laughter echo across the walls.

Only the moon remained, ever present and everlasting, as the storm it now witnessed slowly began to grow.

**A.N: BOOK 1 IS FINISHED! (Clapping.) If you can, please review. I won't procrastinate on Book 2, in fact I might have chapter 1 out by next month ;)**

**Question: What do you think is going to happen in Book 2?  
**


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